By Julia Pierrepont III

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- As thousands of firefighters are battling the raging wildfires in Los Angeles County, politically-motivated finger-pointing has set in. More than 110,000 signatures have been gathered as of Sunday demanding the resignation of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

Started by a user identified as "Frustrated Californian," the petition posted on the Change.org accuses Bass of "gross mismanagement" and a lack of leadership during the crisis.

The petition points to Bass' diplomatic trip to Ghana, which took her out of the country when the fires erupted on Jan. 7. It also criticizes the city's preparation and resource allocation, including water shortages and underfunding of critical resources.

Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Chief Kristin Crowley blasted the 17-million budget cut on CNN on Friday, saying that she had warned the city for three years that the department has been underfunded and under-resourced.

However, Bass countered these claims, arguing that under her administration, the fire department's budget was actually increased by 7 percent overall.

City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo supported Bass' stance, saying that emergency resources remained fully-funded despite cuts in other areas.

The Los Angeles Times said Sunday that the claim was not so fair to the Democratic mayor since the municipal budget has been overwhelmed by a growing number of demands for public health, social services, housing crisis, drought, earthquakes, wildfires and more, causing greater demand for fewer resources.

To prioritize necessary increases in firefighter salaries, Bass had initially proposed a 2.7-percent reduction (23 million U.S. dollars) in the LAFD budget for 2024-2025, primarily by putting a cap on some new equipment purchases.

But Bass and the City Council subsequently went on to approve significant firefighter pay increases amounting to 53 million dollars and an additional 58 million dollars for new firetrucks and equipment, all of which amounted to an LAFD budget increase of over 7 percent.

Despite an overall budget increase, a few areas in the department faced cutbacks while others went up. According to Kristin Crowley, there was a reduction of 7 million dollars in overtime staffing, or "v-hours", which affected radio testing, pilot training and brush clearance inspections, essential for mitigating fire risks.

However, escalating costs, including overtime pay and pension contributions, have strained the city's finances. Critics worried that employee raises, while necessary, may force further operational cutbacks. Watchdog groups and fire department representatives warned of a worsening budget crunch, especially as emergencies demand additional resources.

The ongoing wildfires, particularly the Pacific Palisades and Eaton fires, are intensifying scrutiny of the city's emergency preparedness.

The unprecedented wildfire outbreak highlighted vulnerabilities in Los Angeles City and County water infrastructure as firefighting efforts were hindered by low water pressure and dry fire hydrants caused by the unusual need to use too many fire hydrants at once to combat multiple fires.

Martin Adams, a former manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP), emphasized that the local water systems were not designed to support such massive and unusual wildfire responses, raising questions about what future investments might be needed in water infrastructure.

Since 71-year-old Bass has only been in office for two years, critics were also quick to blame prior administrations for decades of insufficient investment in fire and water infrastructure and for failing to adapt systems to escalating climate risks.

Some local officials are calling for a commission of inquiry to recommend urgent upgrades to water infrastructure and building codes for fire-prone areas.

In response to the water system failures, California Governor Gavin Newsom ordered an investigation into the causes of hydrant shortages and infrastructure gaps.

Experts suggested that improving water storage and pressure zones in hillside communities could mitigate future wildfire risks, though such investments would require significant funding. Others argued that even expanded infrastructure might not suffice against fires of the scale and intensity currently being experienced.

"Mother Nature is not to be trifled with," Los Angeles resident, Cyndy P. told Xinhua Sunday.

"Let's not kid ourselves, we are reaching the perfect storm in LA of over-building, drought, budget crunches and infrastructure inadequacies where no amount of money you throw at the problem is going to be able to handle an environment that is careening out of control from global warming," she said. Enditem

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