California's firefighters are facing unprecedented strain as record-breaking wildfires rage across the state, compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic and civil unrest. By the first week of September, a staggering 3.3 million acres had burned—26 times more than the same period last year—and nearly 30 major blazes remain active. The infernos have destroyed roughly 4,900 structures and claimed 24 lives, including Diana Jones, a volunteer emergency medical technician in Tehama.
More than 14,800 first responders are on the front lines, according to state officials. 'That's everybody we've got,' said Christine McMorrow of Cal Fire. However, the sheer scale of the fires has stretched resources thin. The mutual aid system, which normally allows states to share crews, is under severe pressure due to Covid-19 infections and quarantine requirements. Inmate fire crews, a traditional source of labour, have also been reduced because of outbreaks in prisons.
James Bowron, a battalion chief with the Oakland Fire Department, described the situation as unlike anything in his nearly three decades on the job. 'I have never seen something at this level,' he said. Bowron recently returned from fighting the SCU Lightning Complex fire, which burned nearly 400,000 acres, and was then deployed to the El Dorado fire in San Bernardino. He spoke of the personal toll, including the difficulty of being away from his three young daughters, who are home during the pandemic. 'Your children get used to disappointment,' he added.
The fires themselves are becoming harder to fight, with crews often prioritising evacuations over protecting property. Vince Wells, a former fire chief and union president, noted that wildland crews are now tasked with saving lives in residential neighbourhoods and remote areas where people have fled from cities during Covid-19. 'We are having to run up to a fire, and then the assignments are not to protect structures or start fire attack—it is to get people out,' he said.
Wells, who represents over 30,000 firefighters, warned that the fire season is lengthening. 'Times are unprecedented. Unfortunately it is not over. It used to be that you thought about fires from May till maybe October. But now, we are fighting fires on Christmas Day or into the next year,' he said. As the season continues, fatigued crews brace for more challenges ahead.
