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California faces shortage of inmate firefighters because of early releases due to pandemic
ktla ^

Posted on 08/24/2020 9:53:35 AM PDT by BenLurkin

A total of 5,627 inmates have been released early since July 1, according to the CDCR. The early releases have meant there are 600 fewer inmate firefighters available this fire season compared to last year.

Inmate firefighters “are an integral part of our firefighting operations,” Cal Fire Resource Management Communications Officer Christine McMorrow said.

Inmate crews are assigned to a wide range of duties. When not assigned to fires, inmate crews work on fuel reduction projects near their camp location. During fires, inmate crews are assigned to initial attack, fire line creation, and mop up’s to make a fire safe or reduce residual smoke after the fire is controlled, according to the USDA Forest Service. With 12 to 17 inmates in each crew, inmate firefighters work as “hand crews” who use hand tools like shovels, rakes, and axes to construct the fire line.

CDCR, Cal Fire, and the Los Angeles County Fire Department jointly operates 43 conservation camps in 27 counties. Through the Conservation Camp Program, inmates with “minimum custody” status can volunteer for the fire camp program and work as firefighters, according to CDCR’s website.

The average compensation for an inmate firefighter is $3.63 per day and they earn an additional $1.00 per day when deployed to an active fire...

Right now 96% of Cal Fire engines are committed or responding to wildfires, McMorrow said. “We are experiencing an unprecedented fire siege that is stretching all firefighting resources.”

At least 13,000 firefighters are battling hundreds of major wildfires that have scorched more than 1 million acres across the state.

(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...


TOPICS: US: California
KEYWORDS: california; firefighters; inmate; shortage

1 posted on 08/24/2020 9:53:35 AM PDT by BenLurkin
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To: BenLurkin

They’ll be back.


2 posted on 08/24/2020 9:59:23 AM PDT by Jim Robinson (Trump stands with us to preserve the Republic. Biden kneels with those wanting to burn it all down.)
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To: BenLurkin

There yuh have it, folks.

Gavin depends on Slavery to keep his Kingdom from burning down.

How ‘bout payin’ a living wage, Gruesome? Don’t you value your property?


3 posted on 08/24/2020 10:00:41 AM PDT by Regulator
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To: BenLurkin
I apologize if I'm just not looking at this right, but --

The average compensation for an inmate firefighter is $3.63 per day -- I thought Lincoln freed the slaves?

If your state firefighting strategy is depending on using prisoners to do a chunk of the work, then you may have a questionable strategy.

4 posted on 08/24/2020 10:01:40 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (If White Privilege is real, why did Elizabeth Warren lie about being an Indian?)
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To: BenLurkin

No slave labor?

That’s a shame.


5 posted on 08/24/2020 10:01:57 AM PDT by null and void (The Left weaponizes everything in the service of tyranny.)
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To: BenLurkin

“Been mighty dry lately.”
“Yup. I figure those hills are likely to catch fire real easy.”
“I suppose so. I sure hope a bunch of guys commit crimes real soon. We’re gonna need all the firefighters we can get.”
“I’ve got my fingers crossed, Gov Newsome.”


6 posted on 08/24/2020 10:07:36 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (If White Privilege is real, why did Elizabeth Warren lie about being an Indian?)
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To: null and void

Consult with Kamala she has the inside info on slave labor.


7 posted on 08/24/2020 10:10:00 AM PDT by magua (It's not racism, it's just that thisBecause itÂ’s being reported that a lot of this started in 2015.)
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To: magua
Hmmmmmm, and she made sure a lot of people, some innocent, ended up in California prisons.


8 posted on 08/24/2020 10:19:35 AM PDT by null and void (The Left weaponizes everything in the service of tyranny.)
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To: BenLurkin; All

What is an “inmate firefighter?” Are these prison inmates that are put on the line to fight fires instead of breaking rocks with a sledge hammer?


9 posted on 08/24/2020 10:23:51 AM PDT by Cobra64 (Common sense isnÂ’t common anymore.)
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To: BenLurkin
What's all this 'slavery" talk about? I've never heard about anyone >volunteering for slavery and for that matter, volunteers don't usually get paid at all.
10 posted on 08/24/2020 10:33:17 AM PDT by Graybeard58
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To: BenLurkin

This is pathetic. Leftists idiocy is beyond comprehension. I would NEVER have thought to make prisoners the bulk of of a firefighting force. Simply moronic on its face. But hey, when you have to pay every illegal alien’s housing cost and food, you have to make up for it somewhere.


11 posted on 08/24/2020 10:37:25 AM PDT by vpintheak (Live free, or die!)
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To: Jim Robinson; All

Are the “they” the inmates or the fires? The fires definitely will be back, worse than before, until CA regains its sanity and reverts to the practice of the Indians, who used controlled burns to reduce the fuel buildup. Now those burns might be superseded by the wonders of the bulldozer and chain saw that could be used to harvest the dangerous biomass, gather it, and use it for ordinary forest products and/or generator fuel for generators that would provide base load power to avoid the rolling blackouts.

Regarding the inmates, they could be used to provide the labor needed to gather the biomass and get valuable training in using heavy equipment, giving them a useful skill for when they’re released.,


12 posted on 08/24/2020 10:43:36 AM PDT by libstripper
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To: Graybeard58

When I fought fires, in the 70s and 80s, most inmate crews had a waiting list of volunteers. They ran the best kitchens, too.


13 posted on 08/24/2020 10:49:21 AM PDT by HartleyMBaldwin
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To: BenLurkin

Soros and China are paying them 200/day to burn down cities.


14 posted on 08/24/2020 11:54:05 AM PDT by Zathras
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To: BenLurkin

Bubba’s Bitch: “Hey, Bubba! What did you do to get in this place?”
Bubba: “Arson.”


15 posted on 08/24/2020 11:57:56 AM PDT by Ben Dover
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To: BenLurkin

short sighted unintended consequences


16 posted on 08/24/2020 1:10:17 PM PDT by knarf (I say things that are true.... I have no proof, but they're true.)
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To: Cobra64
What is an “inmate firefighter?” Are these prison inmates that are put on the line to fight fires instead of breaking rocks with a sledge hammer?

They aren't just put on the line, the inmates can volunteer for it. Otherwise, basically, yes.
17 posted on 08/24/2020 7:07:52 PM PDT by Svartalfiar
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