It was like, a year ago, when Carol Parks, the big boss of Los Angeles’ Emergency Management Department, went to a budget committee and started talking about how her department was basically running on fumes. With all the disasters happening in LA, you would think they’d have more than 30 staff members and a tiny budget. But nope, they were just barely hanging on by a thread. And guess what? When the big fire hit the Palisades, they were caught with their pants down. Thousands of homes gone, people displaced, chaos everywhere. And then everyone was like, oh wait, maybe we should’ve listened to Carol Parks.
Now, the Emergency Management Department is trying to clean up the mess from the fire, but they’re doing it on a shoestring budget. They brought in this firm, Hagerty Consulting, for like $10 million to help out. Oh, and they also brought back Jim Featherstone from retirement to help out. But it’s been months since the fire, and people are still like, who’s in charge? What are they even doing? And seriously, where is all that money going? People in the Palisades are not happy, to say the least.
So, Hagerty came in to save the day, or at least that’s what they’re trying to do. They’re working on stuff like debris removal, getting utilities back up and running, and helping people get back on their feet. But some folks are like, why not just give that money to the Emergency Management Department instead? Seems like a better idea, right? But hey, Featherstone says that Hagerty is actually helping them get more money from the feds, so maybe it’s not all bad. And apparently, they’re doing some good work behind the scenes, even if it’s not getting much press.
