City delays release of firefighters' testimony

Attorneys block depositions of crews called to blaze that reignited in Palisades.

- JENNY JARVIE AND ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN

Attorneys for the city of Los Angeles moved this week to block the release of long-awaited depositions of firefighters that could provide a deeper understanding of their decisions and actions in the days leading up to the deadly Palisades fire.

The attorneys representing the city in a lawsuit brought by Palisades fire victims invoked a general protective order the parties agreed to in June, which allows any side to designate all or part of any testimony in the case as confidential for up to 30 days. The parties are supposed to meet during that period to work out which parts should stay confidential, with any disagreements resolved by the judge.

The Los Angeles Fire Department has faced growing scrutiny of its handling of the New Year’s Eve Lachman fire ever since federal officials revealed that its embers rekindled into the Jan. 7, 2025, Palisades blaze that killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes.

In October, The Times reported that an LAFD battalion chief ordered firefighters to pick up their hoses from the Lachman burn scar Jan. 2, even though crews warned that the ground was still smoldering. The LAFD also did not use thermal imaging technology to detect underground hot spots.

But it is still unclear why the LAFD made those decisions. More than a year after the Palisades fire, the public has yet to hear directly from firefighters about their mop-up of the Lachman fire. The depositions of a dozen firefighters over the next two weeks — part of the lawsuit against the city and state — offer the public a rare opportunity to hear firefighters’ accounts of what happened.