Forged in Fire

by Sgt. 1^st Class Kimberly Hill
69^th Public Affairs Detachment

Jan. 28, 2025

LOS ANGELES-- The whir of the helicopter blades fills the cabin as the aircraft circles the remains of several Los Angeles neighborhoods, rows of houses reduced to ash and rubble.  The grim setting almost seems like something straight out of a dystopian movie as the helicopter passes by the iconic Hollywood sign.

The surreal scene is unfortunately the incredibly real aftermath of the Palisades Fire that erupted in Los Angeles and activated these California Guardsmen, now tasked with assessing the damage from above.

While Cal Guard air crews are no strangers to disaster response missions in their home state, with the majority of units and servicemembers located in Southern California, many find themselves with a deeply personal tie to these fires.

“A lot of us are even affected personally, I’ve got family down in Altadena, an aunt and uncle’s house burnt down not too long ago, so this feel’s personal,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Peter Thach, a UH-60 Blackhawk crew chief with Charlie Company, 2-135th Aviation Regiment

Over 2,500 California National Guard members are activated in response to the devastating wildfires that ripped through the LA area last weekend help provide support and relief to civil authorities during one of the most destructive fires in California history.

Resources activated include aerial support like C-130 Modular Airborne Firefighting System, CH-47 Chinook helicopters and UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, over 20 Type I and Type II Handcrew teams, and over a thousand Soldiers manning more than100 traffic points throughout the city.

With several roads closed and federal and local resources working to clear debris and rubble, controlling the flow of traffic and providing information to overwhelmed community members, becomes the key to controlling chaos.

“We as National Guard, what we are doing is trying to make sure people are safe, especially with looting out there," said Pvt. Lesly Benitez, a generator mechanic with the 40^th Military Police Brigade.

Although the cause of many of the Eaton and Palisades fires are still under investigation, weather conditions that weekend exacerbated by a particularly strong Santa Ana windstorm, causing wind gusts of 80-100 mph.

The Eaton and Palisades fire were some of the most destructive and expensive fires in Southern California history, with the Eaton fire at 14,021 acres, 87% contained, destroying whole neighborhoods in Altadena and Pasadena and the Palisades fire at 23,713 acres, 59% contained, which burned through the Pacific Palisades area.

With wildfires increasing in frequency and becoming more destructive over the last 20 years, the California National Guard is no stranger to emergency response operations.  For over 30 years, Cal Fire has partnered with the Cal Guard to provide training and guidance to service members.  This training enables units to provide support to local and federal partners with aircraft, Handcrews and sustainment and support personnel.  

That support has come in many forms, including aid during the Creek fire of 2020, where Cal Guard crews rescued 263 people and 16 dogs trapped by the enormous wildfire that raged across California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.

In 2018, troops aided civilian authorities in clean-up operations, sifting through the charred debris of the destroyed Paradise, Calif., with over 900 troops activated for wildfires throughout the state.

This long-standing partnership has made operations during emergency operations almost seamless.

“Working with Cal Fire on a mission like this is incredible, they integrate with us just as if they were military the entire time,” said Staff Sgt. Carlos Araujo, a Blackhawk helicopter repairer with the 40^th Combat Aviation Brigade.

These frequent activations even created Joint Task Force Rattlesnake in 2019, a taskforce dedicated to preventive and suppression efforts, with 300 servicemembers working full-time throughout the state under the guidance of Cal Fire.

While the fires are beginning to see more and more containment, Soldiers and Airmen with the Cal Guard remain vigilant and steady in their support to civil authorities and their local communities.

“The Guard is here to help, just know we’re doing our absolute best to do it and to make sure that we are doing everything we can to protect lives and property as we can and as safely as we can,” said Araujo.