Firefighter says concerns were raised before Palisades wildfire – NBC Los Angeles

Thousands of Pacific Palisades residents who lost their homes are part of a lawsuit targeting the city and state, as sworn depositions shed new light on concerns raised days before the devastating Palisades fire.

The hours of sworn testimony include statements from Los Angeles Fire Department personnel about the mop-up of the Lachman fire, which began on New Year’s Day in Topanga State Park.

“I’m just here to give you my account of what I did on January 2nd,” firefighter Scott Pike said in his deposition.

On Jan. 2, Pike, a 23-year veteran of the Los Angeles Fire Department, was working an overtime shift and was told to grab hoses during the mop-up of the Lachman fire.

“I just kept my mouth shut, followed orders, picked up hose,” Pike said.

The lawsuit alleges the local and state governments allowed hazardous conditions to exist, leading to the Palisades Fire. Eric Leonard reports for the NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026.

Pike said the Lachman fire appeared to have moved quickly.

“And I just noticed that it looked like the fire blew through there relatively fast. And there was a lot of unburnt fuel in the burn,” he said.

The fire also appeared not to be fully extinguished, according to Pike.

“I could feel the heat coming off of it and I didn’t even want to use my gloved hand because it was hot. So I just kicked it with my boot to kind of expose it. And there was like red hot like coals, what I believe to be the base of a bush or branches that was still smoldering. I even heard crackling,” he said.

Depositions from Pike and other LAFD personnel were shared with NBC4 News by the law firm representing thousands of Pacific Palisades residents, who claim the smoldering Lachman fire reignited on Jan. 7 and swept through the Palisades.

An attorney for the plaintiffs said the lawsuit does not blame the Los Angeles Fire Department.

“None of the plaintiffs are suing the LAFD, okay, we are not blaming the LAFD,” the attorney said.

The plaintiffs’ attorney spoke to NBC4 on the first anniversary of the Palisades fire, explaining why the state government, which owns Topanga State Park, is among the defendants.

“Because it’s the state parks land, they have to be up there monitoring their own land. Now if they see something, they could call Calfire or they could call LAFD back, but it’s their obligation, because it’s their land,” attorney Behle said.

Pike said he raised concerns on Jan. 2 that the Lachman fire was not over.

“I feel like I got kind of blown off a little bit,” he said.

“I saw something, I said something and, to the best of my ability, I thought we could have done more,” Pike said.