Of the nearly 5,000 personnel who were assigned to the Gifford Fire, 300 of them were incarcerated inmates voluntarily doing the same dangerous work expected of any firefighter.
That’s what California Incident Management Team 8 Public Information Officer Rich Eagan said after observing them working during the 131,000-acre blaze in SLO and Santa Barbara counties over more than two weeks in early August.
“They all contributed equally, the inmates working with us,” Eagan said. “It’s tedious, hard work. You’ve got the two guys on the chainsaw, and then the rest of the guys fall in line and do everything else like our guys do. … They have the same duties that we do out here, which is to keep your equipment 100 percent ready at all times.”
According to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) Communication Officer Todd Javernick, 294 inmates from all over the state assisted Cal Fire on the Gifford Fire since it started on Aug. 1. Due to safety and security concerns, he told New Times that he couldn’t share from which facilities.
The opportunity is made possible through the Conservation Fire Camp Program, run jointly by Cal Fire and CDCR. According to the CDCR’s FAQ page, there are 35 camps throughout 25 counties. It’s voluntary and only available to inmates with good behavior and less than eight years left of their sentence.
Becoming a member of the Conservation Fire Camp Program requires intensive mental and physical training. Once an inmate has cleared a physical and mental exam from California Correctional Health Care Services, they must also complete Cal Fire’s Firefighting Training program consisting of four days in the classroom and four days of field training taught by Cal Fire staff.
Depending on their skill level, the CDCR pays inmates between $5.80 and $10.24 per day fighting fires, while Cal Fire pays them an additional $1 an hour. During emergencies, they can work 24-hour shifts, meaning the lowest skill level would earn $29.80 per day.
Recently, legislators like Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay), and even celebrities like Kim Kardashian, have opposed this pay scale and introduced AB 247 to propose that incarcerated firefighters receive a pay bump of up to $7.25 an hour with annual increases. As of Aug. 18, the bill is still being reviewed by committee members.
Other fair jail working practices were also presented to state voters this past election cycle with Proposition 6, which aimed to bar slavery in any form and repeal the provision in the state Constitution allowing jails and prisons to force incarcerated people to work as a punishment for crime. But more than 53 percent of California voters voted against the proposition.
Gifford Fire Incident Management Public Information Officer Eagan told New Times that while the firefighting inmates are in a low-security area, there’s still strict parameters around what they can do during rest periods.
“We’re not allowed to communicate or any of that kind of stuff. So they’re kind of like on their own little island, so to speak, for obvious reasons, but they do work hard,” Eagan said. “They are always flanked by two law enforcement [officers]. When they’re out on the line, they’re OK. When they come back in, they only are allowed to go out to eat and shower. Other than that, they have to stay inside their yurts.”
But Eagan said he saw how impactful the program is for the inmates.
“The biggest thing that I got out of it is it gives the prisoners a sense of worth, right? Like they’re helping [give] back to the communities—giving back in a way that it helps alleviate why they’re in there,” he said. “That, to me, was the biggest takeaway that I got from that, is the self-satisfaction of being able to help others.”
Additionally, they can earn credits toward their sentence, meaning for each day worked they can earn up to two days off their incarceration.
One inmate had been in jail for 28 years. After serving on the fire team for three years, he’s set to be released this winter.
“And he wants to work for Cal Fire,” Eagan said. “There’s been several that have, depending on the degree of what they were accused of, but some of them actually do end up working for Cal Fire once they’re done.” Δ
This article appears in Aug 21-31, 2025.
