Billionaire developer Rick Caruso, who saved the Palisades Village mall when everything else in the center of Pacific Palisades burned down in the Palisades Fire, is donating $5 million to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation.
Caruso, who ran for mayor of Los Angeles in 2022 but lost narrowly to incumbent Karen Bass, was able to save the mall using a private firefighting company, with its own mobile water tankers and crews. The city could not save the town, thanks to a lack of personnel, a lack of water in fire hydrants, and what is widely perceived as mismanagement. Bass also cut tens of millions of dollars from the fire department, and was overseas when the Palisades Fire broke out.
Caruso announced his donation on X (formerly Twitter):
Fellow Angelenos,
The devastation to our city and community is unthinkable. The colossal efforts of our Los Angeles Fire Department cannot be overstated, and lives, homes, and businesses have been saved thanks to their unwavering commitment to fighting a good fight. But this fight is far from over. Due to budget deficits in the Los Angeles Fire Department, which left them under-resourced, the inconceivable has become reality.
Los Angeles Fire Chief Crowley and her team of firefighters and paramedics are desperately in need of funding. Today, Tina and I pledge $5 million to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, to be used at its discretion, so that Chief Crowley and her team can continue their heroic work across the City and the greater Los Angeles area. I am calling on all of those who are blessed with the means to give back at any level and respectfully ask you to join in reaching the goal of $20 million in donations for the Foundation.
This funding will ensure essential equipment reaches our emergency responders, including structure fire helmets, personal protective equipment, bulldozers, and multi-functional fast response vehicles that are utilized in both firefighting and medical triage. Together, we can send critical support to the front lines and protect our community from further catastrophe and hopefully prevent another one in the future.
The outpouring of support the city has seen over the past week gives me hope that when we stand together, we win. My family and I are so grateful for all this city has given us and we will always stand shoulder to shoulder with fellow Angelenos.
Let’s stay diligent, steadfast, and committed to saving and rebuilding. Please visit http://supportlafd.kindful.com to donate.
God bless our great city,
Rick
Caruso also served as a commissioner of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power at the age of 26 in the 1980s. In the aftermath of the fire, many locals are looking to him for leadership after Bass’s failures and those of Governor Gavin Newsom, who appeared to abandon responsibility to local residents to “figure [it] out.”
The Palisades fire had burned 23,713 acres and was only 14% contained on Monday morning, up from 11% on Sunday.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days, available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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