Kristin Crowley, the Los Angeles fire chief, who was appointed to the post in 2022 after two decades of service, has been pointed out as the villain in the drama for her work on inclusion, diversity, and equality within the authority – a strategy called "DEI".
Super entrepreneur Elon Musk, a close ally to the US President-elect Donald Trump, is quick to jump on the bandwagon.
"They prioritized DEI over saving lives and homes", he writes on X.
Governor accused
According to experts, spreading disinformation is a recurring pattern during natural disasters, as people seek scapegoats to blame.
This rhetoric is to be expected – and has become increasingly common – after extreme weather phenomena and disasters, says Sara Aniano, an analyst at the monitoring group Anti-Defamation League (ADL).
On social media, California Governor Gavin Newsom is also being attacked, since Donald Trump claimed that the Democrat blocked the flow of water to the southern parts of the state to protect an endangered fish species. President Joe Biden and local authorities have denied the claim.
Deepening divide
Even Los Angeles' homeless are being accused of being behind the fires in numerous social media posts, which according to the authorities is also unfounded.
The spread of disinformation deepens the divide in society and undermines the work of mitigating the disaster's impact, notes climate expert Sarah Labowitz at the think tank Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
It's the exact opposite of what makes people safe and ready for recovery, she says.
According to researchers, the spread of forest and land fires in western USA is linked to climate change.
