Failed State Update: Delayed Evacuation in Altadena

Firefighters urged broader Altadena evacuations before midnight, but three hours passed before officials issued west Altadena mandatory evacuation orders as the Eaton fire advanced.
Eighteen of nineteen Eaton fire deaths occurred in west Altadena, where evacuation orders were delayed until after fires broke out.
County officials acknowledged a communication ‘gap,’ but the unified command structure makes accountability unclear as independent state investigations into the response continue.