The woman in charge of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at the Los Angeles Fire Department seemingly blamed fire victims in a shocking video that has re-emerged as massive blazes continue to tear through the City of Angels.
In the video public relations video from 2019, Deputy Chief Kristine Larson – who heads the Equity and Human Rights Bureau – defended the fire department’s use of DEI hiring practices.
She then addressed concerns that female firefighters may not be strong enough to carry a man out of a burning building, to which she simply responded: ‘He got himself in the wrong place if I have to carry him out of a fire.’
That comment infuriated many online, as at least 16 people have died in the California fires, which have also wiped out an estimated 40,300 acres of land, 12,300 homes and other structures.
They have also forced 180,000 people to evacuate, and have caused at least $135billion in damages, which would top the damage from any hurricane to hit the United States except for Katrina in 2005, according to the BBC.
‘Los Angeles Fire Department Assistant Chief #KristineLarson should NOT be in her position if a heavy man is someone she won’t even consider rescuing from a fire,’ one California resident posted on X.
‘She’s better off working at Walmart or McDonalds.’
Others took aim at Larson’s comments in the video insisting residents want to be rescued by someone they can identify with.
Los Angeles Fire Department Deputy Chief Kristine Larson – who heads the Equity and Human Rights Bureau – seemingly blamed fire victims in a shocking video
‘You want to see someone that responds to your house, to your emergency – whether it’s a medical call or a fire call – that looks like you,’ she said.
‘It gives that person a little bit more ease, knowing that somebody might understand their situation better.’
But many online said they do not care what their rescuers would look like, and if they did, they would want somebody who appeared physically fit for the dangerous job.
‘In a burning building situation, I can assure you I don’t want someone who looks like me,’ wrote T Becket Adams, the program director for the National Journalism Center at Young America’s Foundation.
‘I don’t want Temu Philip Seymour Hoffman;’ he said, referring to the late actor.
‘I want Ving Rhames busting in like the Kool-Aid Man,’ Adams said of the Mission: Impossible star.
Conservative commentator Collin Rugg also hit out at Larson’s comments.
‘Los Angeles Fire Department Assistant Chief Kristine Larson says when people’s houses are burning down, they want a firefighter to show up who looks like them,’ he wrote.
‘Hot take: People just want someone to show up who will stop their house from burning down.’
Many online criticized Larson for her comments as the massive blazes continue to tear through the City of Angels
Some critics have even argued that the city’s focus on woke efforts have taken precedence over properly staffing and equipping its firefighters.
In fact, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass demanded the fire department make an extra $49million in budget cuts just one day before the devastating Palisades Fire broke out.
This cut is already on top of $17.6million of cuts in her latest budget.
The extra cuts would have shut down 16 fire stations and crippled the department’s ability to respond to emergencies, sources said.
Firefighters battle the Palisades Fire, one of simultaneous blazes that have ripped across Los Angeles County
The Palisades Fire reached over 23,000 acres by Sunday night
Meanwhile, some of the city’s wealthiest residents have hired private fire fighters to protect their homes.
Yet the wildfires continue to burn, with the Palisades Fire extending through more than 23,000 acres by Sunday night and the Eaton Fire scorching over 14,000 acres.
The Hurst Fire in the City of Los Angeles is 76 percent contained, but the National Weather Service warned that gusty winds of up to 50 to 65 miles per hour on Monday could cause explosive fire growth.
DailyMail.com has reached out to the Los Angeles Fire Department for comment.
