Congressman Whitesides Visits Command Center, Meets With First Responders, and Evacuees

Granada Hills, CA – Today, Representative George Whitesides (CA-27) visited the Hurst Fire Command Center at Fire Station 87 in Granada Hills to recognize the tireless work of the first responders, safety officers, and fire fighters, including LA County Fire, LA City Fire, CalFire, LAPD, Angeles National Forest USFS Fire, and California Highway Patrol. 

“The folks fighting these fires and protecting our communities are the best in the world,” said Rep. Whitesides. “We’ve known for years that they are the bravest and toughest – everyone is seeing their endless compassion. I will do everything in my power to ensure they have the resources they need.  I will also work to make sure our communities get what they need to rebuild more resilient than ever.

“So far, the team has done a remarkable job to protect our north county community with only a few structures lost,” said Rep. Whitesides. “We are not done here. We have more winds through Friday and a Santa Ana wind event on Monday.

“This is a terrible disaster that will undoubtedly start a national discussion of how we are managing our wildfire risk, and I plan to be a strong voice in this conversation.”

Fire Chief Jaime Moore, Commander of Operations, Valley Bureau, LA Fire Department, briefed Rep. Whitesides, Governor Gavin Newsom, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, State Senator Menjivar, State Assemblymember Schiavo and State Assemblymember Rodriguez.  

Additionally, Rep. Whitesides visited the Ritchie Valens Evacuation Center in Pacoima to view the work of the Red Cross and visit with evacuees and their pets.  

At the urging of Rep. Whitesides and the bipartisan California Congressional delegation, the federal government has already approved disaster assistance for people displaced by the fires. Rep. Whitesides encourages everyone affected to start their assistance application as soon as possible by visiting; https://www.disasterassistance.gov. 

Rep. Whitesides co-founded Megafire Action, the first organization dedicated to solving our nation’s megafire crisis. Rep. Whitesides also initiated Caltech’s Keck Institute workshop on “Detecting and Tracking Fires that Matter” in 2021 and gave a TED Talk in 2023 on the megafire crisis.

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Congressman George Whitesides is a former NASA leader, job creator, problem solver, and father. He served as NASA Chief of Staff, helping to lead the 15,000 person organization. He co-founded an organization that works to solve the megafire crisis, supporting front-line responders and public health. Now, he’s representing California's 27th Congressional District.