After California’s run-in with major wildfires and the deadliest one to date recently ravaging Paradise, many in the hardest hit areas are hiring private firms to protect their homes. But it’s upsetting the state-funded firefighters.
With California experiencing two years of unprecedented wildfires that have left more than 20,000 homes destroyed and scores dead, the private firefighting business is booming. These brigades work independently from county firefighters; their job is to protect specific homes under contract with insurance companies, according to The Los Angeles Times. Private fire crews’ work can vary from pushing back flames as they approach properties to from getting to the site before the blaze arrives and spraying the homes covered under their policy with fire retardant. But the firefighters who rely on state funds are not too happy that the free market is making a huge difference and saving homes from the blazes.
Kim Kardashian went on Instagram to thank firefighters for saving her Hidden Hills estate and told Ellen DeGeneres in an interview that she hired a private crew to protect her property.
“Our house is right on the end of a big park, so the whole park had caught fire and so if our house went, then every other house would go,” she said. “I don’t take that for granted, and that was such a blessing that we were able to do that.” –The Los Angeles Times
But the taxpayer-funded state firefighters are not happy that the private market is doing a good job. “From the standpoint of first responders, they are not viewed as assets to be deployed. They’re viewed as a responsibility,” complained Carroll Wills, communications director for California Professional Firefighters, a labor union representing “rank-and-file” firefighters in the state.
Private firefighting crews often work on behalf of insurance companies, such as Chubb and USAA, so they have a vested interest in saving people’s homes. They also have proven that they can provide an additional layer of protection for homeowners who opt into the service as part of their insurance policies. The insurance policies range in cost from several thousand to tens of thousands of dollars annually, depending on the homes’ insured value and other factors, such as location. Private companies are also effective. During a wildfire, the private crews might not visit every home insured under the program but will base their location decisions on where the flames are advancing and which homes have a high likelihood of being destroyed without their assistance, reported the Los Angeles Times.
What began more than a decade ago as a white-glove service for homeowners in well-to-do neighborhoods has expanded in recent years as the wildfire danger has increased, said Michael Barry, a spokesman for the Insurance Information Institute, a not-for-profit organization that educates the public about the insurance industry.
But not all state firefighters think the free market is a bad thing. “It’s clear, unfortunately, that just when I don’t think it can get any worse in terms of structures destroyed, it seems to get a lot worse,” California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection assistant chief Chris Anthony told the Los Angeles Times. “If these insurance companies are trying to mitigate risk and liability, the trends are pretty clear the numbers are going to rise as fires get worse. From an economic standpoint, it makes total sense what they’re trying to accomplish.”
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This is amusing. Volunteer firefighters ROUTINELY are a part of Kentucky rural life. It’s voluntary to send a donation to them, but not only tacky and impolite not to do so, but they charge folks who didn’t pay when they put out the fire.
But in urban areas, historically firefighters in America were THUGS and wannabe gang members who both were arsonists and extortionists! Look it up especially on the East Coast cities.
Sounds like some California firefighters need an attitude adjustment.
A private firefighting company in ancient Rome became very wealthy by showing up to fires and offering to put it out, but only if the owner would sign the property over to the company first.
During the Sengoku period in Japan, it was considered a noble essential profession due to fire risk based on their construction and earthquakes.
It’s just peculiar how differently it developed.
In rural Kentucky, a local priest told me that several firefighters stuck their heads in and said, “Father…ummm the new engine is here..” then hemmed and hawed around. They expected it to be blessed and to have a little prayer ceremony.
Around here firefighters are considered heroic and the firefighters teasingly call the volunteer firefighters “squirrels”. And not unkindly.
This is about Union Busting. As most FF are under Union contract with their Cities, Paid professionals. So would you want a Professional Fire Dept coming to your house fire, or some $5 an hour schleps with a face coming to save your house from burning who are not experienced? Private FF are a freaking joke. Wackenhut tried for years to take over public professional fire depts. and failed miserably.
Volunteer is more about heart and protecting your local communities. Although many volunteers get paid for fire responses, so there are some volunteers out there setting things on fire and burning the place down to get paid to show up.
Government unions should be illegal. Those unions are in the process of bankrupting several states, including Commiefornia. Illinois and Connecticunt are close behind.
The pensions these people get are criminal. I get that it is dangerous work. But there were no firefighters running to help people in Commiefornia. I watched footage of them standing around. The city firefighters are clueless on how to deal with a wild fire.
Government unions should be illegal. Those unions are in the process of bankrupting several states, including Commiefornia. Illinois and Connecticut are close behind.
The pensions these people get are criminal. I get that it is dangerous work. But there were no firefighters running to help people in Commiefornia. I watched footage of them standing around. The city firefighters are clueless on how to deal with a wild fire.
As for the obscene pensions paid to them? They will be lucky to collect .50 on the dollar. Greed is one of the seven deadly sins for a reason.
I am a volunteer wildland firefighter and when we have a fire we are required to call it in. 95% of the time we put it out by ourselves but the state or blm firefighters show up anyway. They think we are just stupid hicks because they have more equipment and training. When they show up I just say “looks like you got it handled, I’m leaving, my beer is getting warm”. They are getting paid for nothing. Fug em’ I want my beer cold lol!
Maran: Actually this entire nation needs a real and genuine PURGE!! I feel the country is so full of God awful, vile, nasty critters roaming the streets acting like predators on 2 legs and need to be dealt with…
AIDS IS SKYROCKING IN EUROPE
I WONDER WHY
I WOMDER WHY
Did you not just visit over there?
Left a gift that just keeps giving, huh?
Never fear, the Chinese got that covered
Lets go over this one more time:
The frightened little pig ran to the second pig’s house that was made of sticks. The big bad wolf now came to this house and huffed and puffed and blew the house down in hardly any time. Now, the two little pigs were terrified and ran to the third pig’s house that was made of bricks.
The big bad wolf tried to huff and puff and blow the house down, but he could not. He kept trying for hours but the house was very strong and the little pigs were safe inside. He tried to enter through the chimney but the third little pig boiled a big pot of water and kept it below the chimney. The wolf fell into it and died
Later in the evening after drinks and various festivities he was served up along side stir fried veggies and everyone lived happily ever after
The End
Every wildfire-ignited house fire starts small: leaves in the gutter, window frames, etc. It’s my opinion that nearly every one could be prevented from burning to the ground if only someone is present with the will and the equipment to put it out while it’s still small. When we see miles of burned-down houses, they didn’t burn because of the wildfire, they burned because the house next door caught fire, there was no one there to put it out, and radiant heat keeps igniting the next house.
If an effort has been made long before the wildfire happens (an annual chore, part of being responsible for your property) to minimize the fuel load surrounding the house, the ground fire will whisk by in minutes, even seconds if it’s just dry grass. Then you’re “in the black” and you can safely go back outside to save the house if it has ignited. Just plan for power being out, and possibly water being off, so you need your own water supply and pump that are independent of the grid, or a good stock of full-sized fire extinguishers (not the little toys for kitchen grease fires). We are taught to simply evacuate and settle for a check from the insurance company. I would rather be prepared to stay, fight, and save my house.
It’s called being Firewise, and many communities (at least in east TN) have programs put on by the extension office with the Forestry service and they teach classes in how to protect your home and property. We took it and learned a lot. Too many people here build cheek by jowl, right in the middle of the forest. There’s also no good road access. One way in and out. The Gatlinburg fires trapped a number of people. It’s scary!
Tom,
You must be a fireman!!
I have been a wild-land fireman for over thirty years and everything you’ve said here is exactly correct. What amazed me, watching the drone footage of the burned-out homes in Malibu, was the number of swimming pools, at every house, with tens-of-thousands of gallons of water in each one. A floating fire-pump or even a “trash-pump” and one person, in fair health, could have saved his/here home with very little effort and little exposure. We are trained that the safest place to go, if we are cut off by a wild-fire, is inside a house. I have seen people save their homes with nothing more than a bucket of water and a broom used to throw the water up to the over-hanging eve where most houses start to burn in a wild-fire. That, of course, is the last thing the bureaucrats want the public to do…best to let your house burn down and then take it up with the insurance company.
Choose a metal roof over some tarred oil based asphalt shingle roofs or wood cedar roofing that easily burn. Set up a sprinkler system on your roof top. Like at the peak so the water runs down over the roof on both sides. Like a water Curtin to absorb the heat from the fire and embers. Sorry but also do some clear cutting around your home to clear out brush near it, and clear trees and limbs out that could fall on your house. Fire prevention steps need to be take before a fire, to keep your homes safer. Ignorance is preventable.
Build a cement block home with a metal roof instead of a wood structure. Who in their right mind would live in a wood house in the woods?
^?
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In Ethiopia, there were provident farmers of drought hardy landraces of food plants. Their stores of grain would have been dragged into the open, lit on fire, and they would have been shot, outrightly, for their crime.
It was called primitive accumulation or original accumulation (of wealth). The communists, socialists, and ilk on that spectrum believe that you could use enough food to raise an army, and overthrow their govt.
In the Communist, Russian appraisal of the liberation of the Jews from Germany, focus was put on the a parallel society or system of govt, possibly akin to our deep state bogeyman. Independently productive people, on their own time, are the primal fear of collectivists — like the pinko unionists.
They can’t stand independent food, childcare, production, labor… A kneejerk revulsion.
In my experience, you have a praetorian chip on your shoulder, insulting elderly people with bushes and chimney fires and f- ing up car windows, when you could just put the hose over the hood. Inter agency cooperation has you spying on citizens, without warrants, and reporting some victims of fires to the police.
Quite Weapons for quite wars.
* DEW Directed energy weapons for California fires. Then they don’t actually start fighting fire until out of control. State needs to build that highway.
* Weather modification for storms. Interrupt food supply.
* Economic collapse because of FED Reserve cabal
* Trade war to make prices go up
* Immigrant hordes with MS 13 gangs and drug cartels
* Police bullying and murdering unarmed people
* Free speech stopped by tech monopoly leftist
* Mass shootings scripted so people will accept confiscation of Firearms.
* AI “smart city” control grid
* 5G network to cook your insides
* Robots and AI to replace your job
* Cashless system to further control you
THIS IS YOUR FUTURE. But it is upon you NOW!
Quite Weapons for quite wars:
* DEW Directed energy weapons for California fires. Then they don’t actually start fighting fire until out of control. State needs to build that highway. Or is it also Agenda 21 depopulation? Or simple as politicians wanting to make money?
* Weather modification for storms. Interrupt food supply. Ionosphere heating, HARRP
* Economic collapse because of FED Reserve cabal
* Trade war to make prices go up
* Immigrant hordes with MS 13 gangs and drug cartels
* Police bullying and murdering unarmed people
* Free speech stopped by tech monopoly leftist
* Mass shootings scripted so people will accept confiscation of Firearms.
* AI “smart city” control grid
* 5G network to cook your insides
* Robots and AI to replace your job
* Cashless system to further control you
* Vaccination to dumb you down
* Poor nutrition in corporate food to make you sick
* Flouride in water to make you docile
* Government using EVERY tech device and your Automobile to snitch, snoop, spy, on your every move.
* Bill Gates and others using insects as vectors to inject who knows into you.
* Flu shots to give you cancer and alter your brain chemistry
* Made up wars to kill young fighting age men
* Immigrants that water down your vote, take your job, sponge off government benefits, are violent, deal drugs, bring in disease from third world like TB.
* Immigrants that out breed you. Your vote will not matter in 7 years. Look at the demographics.
* Chem trails that put aluminum, barium, and other metals in your body and food.
* Dumbing down children in public schools
* Legalising dangerous gateway drugs like marijuana so politicians have a dumbed down electorate. Stoners only care about getting stoned. Politicians can steal more money.
THIS IS YOUR FUTURE. But it is upon you NOW!
97% of people are clueless to the hell the cabal is unleashing, NOW.
Educate yourself.
Have web site articles on these topics.
AI and Robots will wipe out humanity. If the politicians don’t start the nuclear war first?
AND there’s also that cloud that keeps mocking you! Shake your fist at it! Show it who’s boss!
There were thought provoking pics, in which the fire selectively chose buildings and infrastructure, that were supposed to be there, over the trees, that were not supposed to be there.
You are more-or-less expected to pave everything over, so that doesn’t happen, conventionally speaking.
The problem is that the public firefighters have to put out all fires and risk their lives even when things get difficult.
The private ones just go in and easily protect one house, don’t risk their lives or anything else at all. and are likely paid better for the short term “fix”. Their job is just to show up one place for a day or two, not protect the public 24/7.
So what happens if tonight someone accidentally (or even maliciously) sets fire to one of these homes? Will they call their insurance company to send the same private firefighters to put it out, or call 911 to have the public firemen do so? If they do the latter, should they come and put out the fire?
tz
Nonsense. Just like cops, publicly employed firemen have no obligation to risk their lives. And they never do.
Yes the public employee firemen should have to respond. The wealthy pay the lion’s share of taxes.
DPC,
I’ve risked my life on numerous occasions putting out the couple hundred house fires I have responded to over the years . Not to mention all the medical runs with emotionally unstable and blood borne fluids I’ve been exposed to also ,Just food for thought. The general public has no idea and it’s understandable why they don’t. Do a ride along with a busy engine company or a rescue transport unit and you will have a different option I’m sure
No, we’re not obligated to risk our lives, but the very act of firefighting presents a life risk. When it comes to assessing whether or not to enter a structure, the general rule we go by is: “risk nothing to save nothing; risk a little to save savable property; risk a lot to save a savable life.”
ALL firegrounds – no matter how small – are full of hazards… For starters, we’re running around wearing 75 pounds of bulky gear and big, clumsy boots. Our hoselines flow with enough water pressure to knock a person off their feet if they open the nozzle too quickly, and in fact it takes two people to safely operate one 1.5″ line. Then, there’s the hazards present in the environment you’re in. No, we are not obligated to risk our lives, but we are doing so the second we board that fire truck.
Everyone with any sense runs AWAY and out of Fires.
Except Firefighters.
They run into danger. Put out the fire. Try to solve the problem.
Everyone with any sense runs AWAY from gunfire.
Except for Marine, Special Ops, etc.
They run TOWARDS gunfire. They silence that gunfire.
You might want to rethink/reconsider your point of view DeplorableBitterClinger?
Mr. DeplorableBitterClinger
Ever been in a fire? Ever been caught up in huge fire?
Ever put out fire fully engulfing?
Ever been in a run and gun gun fight? Been in a running firefight where you are severly outnumbered with no help avilable? Where you make it work or die?
I have.
Maybe that is why I respect men that risk their lives. Risk their personal safety. Risk not coming home. Just because they went to work that day.
I am grateful, thankful, respect, all of those that risk everything so that others can sleep safely.
Guys used to ask me how I could sleep like a baby while in interesting far off places. I respond. “I sleep like a fat baby because you have my back. All is good. I’m well rested.”
Thank you firefighters.
Thank you for men and women who are in dangerous places, surrounded by dangerous people.
Thank you all. Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays.
Good job.
Also, the private funded firefighters aren’t “doing a good job” if you mean protecting everyone at everytime including large scale firebreaks.
If Kim Kardashian has a fire at 2am tonight, will she dial her insurance company to send private firefighters, or 911 to send the public firefighters?
Something similar has been happening in South Africa, for years. Private police and security forces that can be called to show up and protect the homeowners.
Government hires, for the most part, people that are unable to obtain employment in the private sector. Now that government jobs in Commiefornia are based on affirmative action and quotas, the best people are no longer hired. This results in a decline in the quality of the work force. It is a downward spiral.
Did anyone else read the article, on Drudge, about Dallas PD slow rolling to calls? I predicted this after those five LEOs were assassinated. Apparently it is taking two hours to show up to priority calls, including shootings. I saw this coming. I also predict a time when the police will only respond to calls during daylight hours and for the purpose of tagging-n-bagging the body. Why investigate a crime when the entire neighborhood hates you and is uncooperative? There is no point. Some neighborhoods will receive slow, low, or limited services by local LE. What did they expect?
Check out the law-suite WARREN Vs. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. It was the first of MANY that came to the same decision that the police are NOT obligated to come to your aid in an emergency. The courts have said that the police are there to “protect the public, at large, and maintain civil order”; they are NOT there to protect INDIVIDUALS and are not required to come to your aid, unless you have a “special relationship” with them. Ofcourse the courts have not defined what that means so it’s open to interpretation with each law-suite.
The firefighters have a point, they have not lost a foundation yet!
Ah yes, public sector unions. Use the power of government to enforce your monopoly. Can’t be havin’ no competition now can we.
When you buy a home be sure to buy on a street that has wide lanes. If a car stalls on a narrow street you can’t get out fast enough to avoid a fire.
Sustainable cities are being planned which will have very little room between buildings. This will make fires go quickly from one building to another. Sustainable is not sustainable.
_