Consulting Firm Finds No Racial or Socioeconomic Bias in Los Angeles County Eaton Fire Evacuations

A California-based consulting firm found that Los Angeles County fire officials did not discriminate on the basis of race or socioeconomic status and did not delay evacuation orders during the January 2025 Eaton fire. Citygate Associates conducted the review at the request of the county and its fire department.

The firm examined how evacuation alerts were issued after the fire began on the evening of January 7, 2025. The blaze destroyed more than 9,000 buildings and killed 19 people in foothill communities of the San Gabriel Mountains. Citygate reported that officials had limited visibility into the fire's atypical progression.

The firm reviewed dispatch logs, weather data, and alert records and interviewed fire and sheriff's department officials. Aircraft operations were grounded due to high winds. Evacuation warnings and orders were issued as officials learned of the fire's spread into northwestern Altadena.

Most of the individuals who died lived west of Lake Avenue in a historic African American middle-class area. Citygate stated that evacuation planners used major north-south and east-west streets such as Lake Avenue to define evacuation zones. The department's resources were also stretched by a separate fire that day in Pacific Palisades, about 34 miles west.

Accountability called the report "pages of deflection" in a Tuesday statement. The group said the firm relied on department insiders rather than residents who experienced the fire firsthand. California Attorney General Rob Bonta launched a civil rights investigation into the emergency response in February.

Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said the report provides an honest account of operations while acknowledging the tragedy residents endured.