Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley was fired by Mayor Karen Bass just hours after delivering a scathing public critique of the city's leadership, accusing it of underfunding and failing its fire dept.

The anger comes as authorities said the four fires, which have burned almost 4,000 acres, have not yet been contained.

Megyn Kelly sounded off on Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley and Mayor Karen Bass — charging that the officials’ preoccupation with diversity, equity and inclusion programs distracted them from the city’s fire-combating duties. “In recent years LA’s fire chief has made not filling the fire hydrants top priority, but diversity,” Kelly said in disbelief on her show Wednesday. “Diversity is at least among the top priorities for the...

Kristin Crowley was appointed Los Angeles fire chief in 2022 at a time of turmoil in a department consumed by complaints of rampant hazing, harassment and discrimination among its 3,400-member ranks. She was portrayed by then mayor Eric Garcetti as a stabilizing force, a trailblazer and the most qualified person. “I look for who’s best, not just who makes history, because the protection of our city first and foremost has to go to the human being...

Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, the first female and LGBTQ head of the Los Angeles Fire Department, has encountered significant backlash for her emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts before the fires. In 2021, the department launched a “racial equity plan” and established a new bureau in 2023 to promote diversity.