Committee reviews red-flag/PDS protocols; approves several amendments and report-backs on enforcement and towing

Emergency Management Department staff briefed the Ad Hoc LA Recovery Committee on current city protocols for red-flag warnings and the higher-level Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) designation, and the committee approved a set of amendments and report-back instructions that revise or seek additional analysis on enforcement, towing capacity, and funding for red-flag response.

John Brown, assistant general manager with the city's Emergency Management Department, said the PDS designation "follows a normal red flag protocol" but will be called out in upcoming EOP annex revisions; the revision will mandate that "no less than a level 3 EOC activation will occur during the particularly dangerous situation time frame." Jillian DiVella, EMD planning and mitigation chief, noted that two different red-flag declarations exist (the National Weather Service regional red-flag warning and an LAFD local red-flag day) that trigger different departmental protocols and, in LAFD'declared days, automatic red-flag parking restrictions.

Committee members asked about public alerts and language access. EMD said NotifyLA templates exist in multiple languages (EMD said seven) and that alerts will be sent in English and Spanish with additional language support based on device-language settings. "The translations themselves...have been done by a professional translator company," an EMD official said.

LAHSA described outreach and transportation support for unhoused people in very high fire severity zones; Gary Singer (Rec & Parks) described current park-closure policy during PDS events as closing unstaffed parks, locking gates and posting signage but acknowledged enforcement challenges in large, unstaffed parklands.

Councilmember Rodriguez pressed departments on real staffing capacity, arguing the city lacks sufficient operational staff to meet expanded enforcement or closure expectations. "We don't have the adequate staffing related to our peer jurisdictions to do everything that's mandated in the ad code for us," an EMD official acknowledged; Rodriguez said mandating enforcement without staffing risks setting staff up to fail.

The committee debated and voted on a package of amendments. Highlights:

- The committee approved, as amended, instructions for LAPD and DOT to report on current policies and operational practices governing coordination with OPGs (tow services) during red-flag and pre-disaster events; the requested report should assess tow-yard capacity, equipment needs, and whether mutual-aid mobilization clauses are required. (Approved as amended.)

- The committee added CAO involvement and directed a report on options to increase fines, whether fine revenue could be allocated to wildfire preparedness, and expanded patrol and towing capacity during red-flag and PDS events; that instruction was approved.

- A proposal to task the City Attorney with drafting enforceable restrictions on outdoor barbecuing, fire pits and open-flame activities during red-flag warnings was changed to a report-back for further analysis and was approved as a report request.

Roll-call votes were taken on multiple elements in a bifurcated manner; several amendments passed with recorded ayes from the sitting members and some items were sent back as report-backs for further work with relevant departments. The clerk recorded the approvals and the committee closed Item 2 as amended.

Next steps: EMD will continue annex revisions to clarify PDS triggers and EOC activation level, LAHSA and Rec & Parks will continue coordination on evacuations and closures, and the requested report-backs (including towing capacity and CAO analysis of fine revenue uses) will return to the committee.