California Governor Gavin Newsom called for an impartial probe of the local water system and stated that the flames in the Los Angeles area will rank among the worst natural disasters in American history during an appearance on NBC News Meet the Press on Saturday.
When asked if the tragedy would rank among the worst in the country’s history, Newsom responded, “I think it will be in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope.”
His comments followed reports from firefighters fighting fires throughout greater Los Angeles on Wednesday that several fire hydrants ran dry in the first few hours.
Was it simply too much? We drew it down since you had so much that was used? Were pipes involved? Was there electricity? Were pumps, pipes, and electricity all involved? Was that drawdown difficult since you destroyed almost 7,000 buildings here, and each one of those buildings had a leaking pipe, so we would have lost the water pressure anyhow? Newsom inquired.
Did that make it any harder for us to put out the fire? Or was there truly no combat that could have had greater significance, and 99 mph winds were decisive? He asked again.
In an article on TruthSocial on Wednesday, President-elect Donald Trump accused President Joe Biden and Newsom of being to fault for the fire hydrants’ shortage of water. There is no money in FEMA and no water in the fire hydrants. JOE BIDEN IS LEAVING ME WITH THIS. JOE, THANK YOU!
Additionally, the president-elect chastised Newsom for not supporting a plan during Trump’s first term that would have redirected water from Northern California to Southern California. The discussion, according to experts, has little to do with the present flames, which were brought on by strong winds and a protracted dry spell.
The president-elect claimed in a Truth Social post that Newsom didn’t care about the people of California and only wants to save a smelt, a fish that is basically useless, by providing it less water.
Trump’s attempt to link the delta smelt to this fire is unacceptable due of its inaccuracy. Newsom added on Saturday that it was also “incomprehensible to anyone who understands water policy in the state.”
Additionally, he chastised Trump for disseminating additional false information regarding the flames.
Last Monday, the president-elect also disparaged Democrat Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, who wrote on Truth Social that the fire was expanding quickly for three days with little containment. Such failed statistics have never been seen before! Karen Bass and Gavin Newscum’s egregious ineptitude.
Newsom declared on Saturday that he has complete faith in our community. I believe in the leaders we have. When asked if he has faith in Bass, who was not in Los Angeles when the wildfires started because she had just returned from a trip to Ghana, he said, “I have faith of our capacity to work together.”
Biden in particular was praised by Newsom, who thanked him for declaring a major disaster and enabling the state to receive federal funding.
On behalf of the 40 million Americans who reside in California, he added, “I am fortunate that Joe Biden is president of the United States and took immediate action.” And I sincerely hope that we can collaborate with Donald Trump in the same way and with the same attitude.
Speaking particularly about Los Angeles’ role as the host city for the 2028 Olympic Games, Newsom also discussed his plans for the city’s reconstruction following the disasters.
Donald Trump, the president of the United States, deserves credit for helping to bring the Olympics to America, specifically to Los Angeles. For that, we are grateful to him. According to Newsom, this is his chance to shine, as well as the chance for this nation, California, and this community to shine.
According to Newsom, we are already planning a Marshall Plan ahead of the Olympics. A team is already working on reinventing L.A. 2.0, and we are making sure that everyone is involved—not only those living along the coast, but also those who were affected by this catastrophe.
We have already begun speaking with city officials. Civic leaders are already being consulted. We are already speaking with organizations and corporate executives. Our conversation is with labor leaders. We’re beginning to plan how we can assemble a group of people on recovery philanthropy. “How can the region be organized,” Newsom stated.