The Santa Ynez Reservoir in Pacific Palisades, photographed on Jan. 29, 2025. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
AS THE SMOKE CLEARED AFTER the devastating Palisades fire, the Santa Ynez Reservoir quickly emerged as a potent symbol of civic dysfunction.
Situated in the hills above Pacific Palisades, the reservoir holds up to 117 million gallons of water and could have been full the day the firestorm erupted. Instead, it was bone dry, shuttered for repairs.
In the year and a half since the blaze, homeowners have sued the city and the Department of Water and Power over the empty reservoir, alleging their homes might have been saved had it been operating. Republicans in Congress have launched a probe into the fire and empty reservoir. And Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered an investigation into the reservoir and what impact, if any, its absence had on the firefight.
Now, the reservoir has emerged as a major issue in the city’s mayoral election.
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