A Catastrophic Breakdown of L.A. Fire Alert System Left People in Harm’s Way Until it Was Too Late

We began hearing about it since shortly after the January 7 outbreak of the Santa Ana wind-powered fires that incinerated the hills of Pacific Palisades and the neighborhoods of Altadena and Pasadena. Complaints of false evacuation and other emergency notices left people confused and angry. A local weather reporter got an erroneous cell phone evacuation notice live on the air as he reported about the issue.