LA firefighter reveals blaze that sparked Palisades inferno was never put out, ignored by captain

Fire crews were ordered to leave the Lachman fire before it was fully extinguished — with it later reigniting into the horrific Palisades fire, a firefighter has claimed.

Scott Pike said he was blown off by a captain when he warned there were five areas still smoking at the site that were too hot to touch with his gloves on.

His comments came in a lawsuit — which city lawyers tried to block from being made public — filed by victims of the inferno against Los Angeles and California.

Scott Pike said he was blown off by a captain when he warned there were five areas still smoking at the site that were too hot to touch with his gloves on.

According to the LA Times, Pike said: “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.

“There was like red hot like coals that was still smoldering, and I even heard crackling.”

He continued: “That’s how I approached him, is like, ‘Hey, Cap … We have hot spots in general. We have some ash pits.’ That’s an alert to double check the whole area and maybe we need to switch our tactics.”

He claimed other members of his team as well as the captain seemed eager to leave the site and said he regrets no one listened to him.

“There was like red hot like coals that was still smoldering, and I even heard crackling.” AFP via Getty Images

The LAFD claims the Lachman fire was completely extinguished by January 2 and it gets little mention in an after-action report, which Pike said he was not asked to contribute to.

The Palisades fire quickly exploded just days later on January 5, wiping out thousands of homes and leaving 12 dead.