California Inmates Helping to Fight Wildland Fire

The ongoing drought, hot winds, low precipitation and an overabundance of fuel for fire all combine to make containing and fighting fires in California more expensive than ever. According to Shaun Donovan, director of the federal Office and Management and Budget, since 1995 the 10-year average has increased by $700 million. 

One rather ingenious way the state of California has come up with facing this ever increasing need while keeping things fiscally manageable is by employing inmates to help fight the fire. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) volunteer firefighter program is meeting two important needs at once, filling the ranks of frontline firefighters and giving inmates an opportunity to give back to their communities.

A huge part of rehabilitation is feeling useful. We all feel the need to contribute in some way and this program allows certain inmates the opportunity to provide a valuable service while serving time.

And it is indeed a truly valuable service they’re providing. CDCR firefighters are some of the first to hit the front lines doing hard labor such as clearing brush and digging trenches. This is all work that has to be done and by filling the front line ranks with inmates, it frees the trained and experienced professional firefighters to focus on the more involved and technical jobs such as evacuation, flying helicopters, and driving bulldozers.

At just $2 an hour, these inmates are also saving the state a tremendous amount of money.

Considering inmates make up anywhere from 20 to 40 percent of the firefighting force that amounts to a savings of approximately $80 million every year. 

But the benefit really isn’t just in the huge cost savings to the state. For many of these inmates it means the world to be able to do something that matters again. “It’s a big opportunity,” says Robert Lane, an inmate who’s been participating in the program for five years now. 

firefighter inmates

These guys want to give back and this program gives them the means to do so. It’s also an opportunity to have work one can take pride in, which is hugely beneficial when one is trying to make right for wrong they’ve done and be eligible to join the volunteer crews, inmates have to be on good behavior.

Of course it’s not a perfect program. Some inmates try to take advantage of the situation and use it as an opportunity to escape, though no one has ever done so successfully. And there was a riot in a camp that was gang related. But progress is never a straight line and so far the good seems to convincingly outweigh the bad.

Put in his own words this is what one former CDCR firefighter had to say about the program.

“I mean, I obviously wouldn’t go back to being an inmate.

But honestly, I truly believe that the fire camp saved my life.

I had always struggled with drugs and alcohol, and I have been sober ever since that camp, which is partly because of AA but also because it made me appreciate myself, feel as though I had a purpose in me.” You can read the interview HERE

firefighter inmates

If you have ever been to a fire camp you can see these inmates everywhere and though you’re not allowed to talk to them you appreciate their hard work and help in the fire suppression tactics.

Thanks for reading and please if you haven’t done so yet go ahead and download the Firefighter Jobs App for the iPhone. I’ve been getting great feedback from the app and hope you enjoy as many others.

Have a good one!

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