CA To Investigate Possible Racial Discrimination In Delayed Evacuation Order For LA County Wildfire

LOS ANGELES, CA — The state attorney general on Thursday announced he is investigating whether discrimination was a factor in the way county prepared for and responded to the Eaton Fire.

Attorney General Ron Bonta said the investigation will seek to determine whether there was potential race, age or disability discrimination in the emergency preparations and response to the fire in West Altadena, a historically black community.

All but one of the 19 people killed in the Eaton Fire lived in West Altadena. And the average age of the people who died was 77 years old, according to Bonta.

Residents in that neighborhood received evacuation warnings "many hours after" warnings were sent to the rest of Altadena, according to Bonta.

"The investigation we've launched is driven by one over-arching question — did the Los Angeles County Fire Department's delay in notifying and evacuating the historically Black West Altadena community during the Eaton Fire violate state anti-discrimination and disability rights laws?" Bonta said at a Los Angeles news conference announcing the investigation. "Meaning, did unlawful race-, disability- or age-based discrimination in the emergency response result in a delayed evacuation notification that disproportionately impacted West Altadena residents?

City News Service contributed to this report.