LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – Former Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley, who was ousted by Mayor Karen Bass in the aftermath of the deadly Palisades Fire, has sued the city over her termination, accusing the mayor of “orchestrating a campaign of retaliation” against her. In her Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit filed Friday, Crowley
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – The Los Angeles Fire Department attempted to shield Mayor Karen Bass and other top brass from “reputational harm” caused by the city’s handling of the devastating Palisades Fire that burned 23,448 acres and killed 12 people, the Los Angeles Times reported today. The department tried to shape news media coverage with
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – The city of Malibu today sued the state, the city and county of Los Angeles and other entities today, accusing them of various failures that led to the start and proliferation of the Palisades Fire that destroyed hundreds of Malibu homes along with municipal facilities and infrastructure.  “This decision was not
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – The state Attorney General’s Office today announced a civil rights investigation into the response to the January 2025 Eaton Fire, questioning whether race, age or disability discrimination contributed to delays in emergency notifications and evacuations in the historically black West Altadena area. Â Â Attorney General Rob Bonta noted that the 14,000-acre
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – A new executive order from President Trump that was signed on Friday aims to “cut through bureaucratic red tape and speed up reconstruction in the Pacific Palisades and Eaton Canyon areas one year after devastating wildfires destroyed nearly 40,000 acres of homes and businesses,” according to the White House. The president
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – It’s been a year of hurdles, roadblocks, and varying emotions for Dave Skabinski, losing his home of 32 years in the Eaton fire. Taking it one day at a time, he’s hit his stride with a positive attitude and rebuilding with a take action approach. “But I decided Very quickly that I
Continue Reading PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. (KESQ) – Saying the newspaper’s future “burned up in the fire,” the owner of the 97-year-old Palisadian-Post in Pacific Palisades announced today that the publication is ceasing operations — another victim of January’s Palisades Fire. “This time last year, we still had a future,” Alan Smolinisky wrote in a message to readers
Continue Reading ALTADENA, Calif. (KESQ) – Attorneys representing Altadena fire survivors filed a lawsuit today against Southern California Edison and Genasys Inc. over the death of a woman who died in the Eaton Fire, accusing the utility of igniting the blaze and Genasys of failing to issue evacuation warnings in her neighborhood. Â Â The lawsuit was filed
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PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. (KESQ) – Firefighters who were mopping up a New Year’s Day brush fire that authorities now say flared into the deadly Palisades Fire warned a battalion chief there were signs the blaze was still smoldering, but they were directed to leave the area anyway, it was reported today. Citing text messages among
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – The 29-year-old man accused of setting a New Year’s Day fire that prosecutors say smoldered for a week and grew into what became the deadly Palisades Fire pleaded not guilty today to a trio of federal charges. Rinderknecht pleaded not guilty Thursday afternoon in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom to one
Continue Reading LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – A federal grand jury today indicted a 29-year-old former Pacific Palisades resident who is charged with allegedly intentionally sparking what eventually became the Palisades Fire, one of the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles history. Jonathan Rinderknecht, an Uber driver who most recently lived in Florida, is charged in the three-count
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ALTADENA, Calif. (KESQ) – As Southern California Edison finalizes a forthcoming claims program for eligible individuals and businesses impacted by the Eaton Fire, residents of Altadena who lost their homes and community urged the utility today to build a “fair, reasonable and fully funded” plan that helps survivors rebuild. According to a draft released by
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INDIO, Calif. – CAL FIRE is looking to bolster its ranks as the threat of wildfires in California continues to grow. To do so, a collaborative effort between CAL FIRE and the Riverside County Office of Education (RCOE) to show hundreds of high school seniors possible careers in firefighting is being made in Indio. The career
Continue Reading LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – A 29-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the devastating Palisades Fire that swept through Los Angeles in January 2025, claiming twelve lives and destroying thousands of homes and structures. Federal authorities identified the suspect as Jonathan Rinderknecht, a former resident of Pacific Palisades who had relocated to Florida after
Continue Reading LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – On top of extreme weather conditions and dry vegetation that fueled the devastating Palisades Fire that killed 12 people and leveled much of the community, leadership and communication challenges, exacerbated by limited resources, impeded the Los Angeles Fire Department’s initial response to the conflagration, according to a city-commissioned review released today.
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ALTADENA, Calif. (KESQ) – Standing near the site of a destroyed home, a group of fire-impacted Altadenans and local organizations called on state Attorney General Rob Bonta today to investigate Los Angeles County’s response to January’s Eaton Fire, including delays in evacuation orders being issued to residents in the western Altadena area. The group,
Continue Reading LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – A series of outdated policies, weaknesses and systemic vulnerabilities hampered the effectiveness of emergency notifications and evacuation orders during January’s devastating and deadly Eaton and Palisades wildfires, according to a county-commissioned independent review released today. Â Â The “Independent After-Action Report” was commissioned by the Board of Supervisors and produced by McChrystal
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JURUPA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – Fire crews are battling a 500+ acre brush fire in Jurupa Valley this weekend. Cal Fire officials say the Pyrite Fire began Friday afternoon around 5 p.m. near Pyrite Street and Granite Hills Drive, spreading quickly in the hills above the 60 freeway. As of Saturday evening, the fire stands
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LOS ANGELES (KESQ) – The United States Attorney’s office announced two lawsuits against Southern California Edison Co., today, alleging that faulty transmission and power lines led to the devastating Eaton and Fairview fires. The filings cite “a troubling pattern of negligence,” and allege that the company’s negligence caused the deadly fires, which burned tens of
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THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – Monsoonal thunderstorms have brought some summer rain to Riverside County’s local wildland, but fire officials say it has done little to curb the region’s high fire danger. Because of the lingering fire risk, firefighters with CAL FIRE caution outdoor restrictions for campfires, trails, and other activities will likely remain in
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