Traci Park Is Shirking Responsibility for Palisades Fire

Councilmember Traci Park is quick to point fingers, but when it comes to taking responsibility for the issues in her own district, she falls short. Case in point: the empty Santa Ynez Reservoir that could have helped put out the Palisades Fire but was bone dry when firefighters needed it most. Instead of owning up to her role in overseeing key infrastructure, she’s blaming everyone else.

The Santa Ynez Reservoir, which holds 117 million gallons of water meant to support firefighting efforts in areas like the Pacific Palisades, had been out of commission since February 2024 due to repairs. That meant when the Palisades Fire broke out, firefighters had nowhere to pull water from—a massive failure that put homes and lives at risk.

As the elected representative of Council District 11, Park should have been on top of this long before the fire erupted. But now, instead of explaining why she failed to act, she’s shifting blame to city and state officials. And let’s not forget—Park voted to cut funding for emergency services. The Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget was slashed by $17.6 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, limiting its ability to prepare for and respond to emergencies. Instead of making sure essential services were properly funded, she prioritized bloated police budgets while firefighters were left scrambling when it mattered most.

Sure, Park is right that officials need to be held accountable. But real accountability starts with taking responsibility for your own failures. A real leader would be working to fix these systemic failures—not just using them as an opportunity to score political points. If Park actually wants to make sure this never happens again, she needs to stop dodging blame and start doing her job: keeping her constituents safe. That means funding emergency services, staying on top of infrastructure issues, and taking proactive action before disaster strikes—not after.