Federal immigration authorities raided an active wildfire response in Washington, arresting two firefighters and sidelining crews for hours. Wildfire veterans called the operation nearly unprecedented and a breach of longstanding protocol that federal agents do not disrupt emergency responders to check immigration status. Many veterans believe the incident management team intentionally deployed crews to a remote location under false pretenses so immigration agents could verify status. The arrests reverberated across fire crews, agency leaders and contractors, stoking fear and distrust among firefighters on the ground. Firefighters expressed concern that future deployments could be avoided if crews fear becoming targets for immigration raids.
Stateline spoke to nearly a dozen firefighters, agency staffers and contractors familiar with the incident, who shared their belief that the top officials assigned to the fire deployed the crews to a remote location under false pretenses so federal agents could check their immigration status. Most of them spoke privately for fear of retaliation. The raid has reverberated among fire crews, agency leaders and contractors. Wildfire veterans say the arrests have stoked fear and distrust among firefighters on the ground.
Wildland firefighters were stunned when federal immigration authorities last week raided an active wildfire response in Washington state, arresting two firefighters and sidelining crews for hours. Wildfire veterans say the operation was nearly unprecedented, a breach in longstanding protocol that federal agents don't disrupt emergency responders to check immigration status. Worse, many wildfire veterans believe the management team overseeing the fire crews played a key role in handing over the firefighters to immigration authorities.
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