While the forest fires in Los Angeles, USA, displaced thousands of people from their homes, some people used this disaster as an opportunity to blame their political opponents. Donald Trump, who shared a series of posts on the Truth Social platform, blamed California Governor Gavin Newsom’s water policies for the failure to control the fires. Trump claimed that these policies had failed, claiming that Newsom was “restricting water for delta smelt, a worthless species of fish.” On the other hand, Elon Musk, in a post on the X platform, claimed that fires spread because the Los Angeles Fire Department prioritized diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) policies. Musk said, “DEI causes people to die.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, five people have died in the Eaton fire so far and more than 130 thousand people have been ordered to evacuate. However, the reason why the fires spread is neither related to delta smelt, DEI policies, or fire department budget cuts. This misinformation is not only misleading, but can also have serious consequences. For example, disinformation spread in the wake of last year’s hurricanes Milton and Helene resulted in threats against FEMA workers.
Trump claimed that fire hydrants were cut off, especially in the Pacific Palisades area. Accusing Newsom, Trump criticized water management, saying, “This incompetent governor is not allowing clean, beautiful water to flow into California.” However, Newsom’s office stated that there is no document called the “water restoration declaration” that Trump mentioned. “Such a document is completely fictitious,” Newsom’s communications director, Izzy Gardon, said in a statement.
Metropolitan Water District board member Mark Gold said delta smelt protection efforts had no connection to the fires. Gold said, “It is not the case that the amount of water coming from Northern California is not enough to extinguish the fire. “This is a result of the devastating effects of a changing climate,” he said. Janisse Quiñones, official of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Energy, explained that the decrease in water pressure was due to increased demand. High water usage at lower elevations prevented the filling of water tanks at higher elevations.
During the fires, claims about the municipal budget also came to the fore on social media. Elon Musk fueled the debate by sharing content claiming that fires spread because the municipality cut the fire department budget. However, according to Politico, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass did not reduce the fire department budget; on the contrary, it increased the budget by more than $50 million compared to last year. Still, Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said Bass cut $7 million from the fire department’s overtime budget, making it harder to respond to large-scale fires.
Fake images about Los Angeles fires are also circulating
Recently, artificial intelligence-supported fake images about fires have been circulating on social media. Images of looters in the Palisades or the Hollywood sign engulfed in flames reveal the pervasiveness of false disinformation.