Los Angeles:
US President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday accused California authorities of incompetence over their response to deadly wildfires burning around Los Angeles.
“Wildfires are still raging in Los Angeles, and incompetent politicians don’t know how to put them out,” President Trump said on his platform Truth Social.
“This is one of the worst catastrophes in our country’s history. They just can’t put out the fire. What’s wrong with them?” he wrote.
The speed and intensity of the fires ravaging Los Angeles tested firefighting infrastructure and prompted questions and criticism about the state’s preparedness.
In the Pacific Palisades area, one of five fires in the area caused damage, fire hydrants ran dry, and efforts in other areas were further hampered by water shortages.
With just over a week left until his return to the White House, President Trump has launched a series of unsubstantiated broadsides accusing California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, of failing to respond to the fires.
Meanwhile, Newsom invited President Trump to visit Los Angeles and survey the devastation with him.
The fire has killed at least 16 people, displaced more than 150,000 people and destroyed more than 12,000 structures, state officials said.
“Thousands of fine homes are gone, and many more will be gone soon. Death is spreading everywhere,” Trump said in a post.
Despite the heroic efforts of firefighters, including precision sorties by airmen, the Palisades Fire continued east toward the Getty Center Museum’s rare collections and north toward the densely populated San Fernando Valley. It keeps going.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
