Kristin Crowley was elevated to Los Angeles fire chief in 2022 at a time of department turmoil. As a career firefighter, she was portrayed by the then-mayor as a stabilizing force.

Kristin Crowley was elevated to 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.

Chief Kristin Crowley said during an interview Friday that the city failed the department amid the ongoing wildfires in Southern California that have taken at least 11 lives and burned more than 37,000 acres.

The Los Angeles Fire Department refuted speculation that its chief, Kristin Crowley, had been dismissed as crews continue to battle the wildfires across the region.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and LAFD Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, shared updates on fire containment as firefighters raced to cut off spreading wildfires before potentially strong winds return. (AP vi

At a news conference, Mayor Karen Bass said she and the fire chief, who claimed the city had not sufficiently funded the Fire Department, were in “lock step.”

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and LA Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley put on a united front during a news conference Saturday on the deadly wildfires which continue to rage — a day after reports surfaced saying the chief had been fired.

After a meeting so long that Mayor Karen Bass missed her Friday night media briefing on the crisis, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley emerged still in the job despite blaming the administration's budget cuts for the failure to contain the raging wildfires.

Crews have reported some progress in the battle against LA’s deadly wildfires, but tens of thousands remain under evacuation orders. Follow for live updates.

For five consecutive days, wildfires fanned by strong winds have ravaged neighborhoods in Los Angeles, destroying more than 12,300 homes and buildings and leaving at least 11 dead. Fresh evacuations were ordered from Mandeville Canyon to the Interstate 405 freeway on Friday evening because of a flare up of the massive Palisades Fire.