Two firefighters who were part of a crew trying to help put out a wildfire in the US state of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula were taken into custody by United States Border Patrol agents, federal authorities said.
The US Department of Homeland Security and the Border Patrol said in a statement on Thursday that border patrol agents found that two of the workers, who were hired by private firefighting contractors, were in the US illegally and detained them during the operation to put out the blaze.
It was reported that federal agents held crews from private fire contractors for several hours on Wednesday as they were preparing to help tackle the 9,000-acre (3,600-hectare) Bear Gulch Fire in Washington state.
The immigration raid was unusual in that such operations have customarily not been carried out around natural disasters or sites of emergency, according to reports.
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said its officers were requested by forestry rangers to verify the names provided on contractor firefighter rosters.
“Several discrepancies were identified, and two individuals were found to be present in the United States illegally, one with a previous order of removal,” CBP said in a statement.
Authorities also said the US Bureau of Land Management terminated contracts with two contractor firms at the site and escorted their 42 firefighter staff off federal land.
The two firefighters without proper documentation were arrested and taken into custody on charges of illegal entry and re-entry to the US.
During the arrests, border patrol agents reportedly lined the 44 firefighters up and ordered them to produce identification, according to The Seattle Times, with crew members telling how they were not allowed to film the encounter.
“You risked your life out here to save the community,” one firefighter, who was not named, told the paper.
“This is how they treat us.”
Oregon Democratic Senator Ron Wyden posted on the social media site X that one of the arrested firefighters was from his state and denounced the immigration arrest, saying it made communities less safe.
Washington’s Democratic Governor Bob Ferguson said he was seeking details about the immigration operation.
“Deeply concerned about this situation with two individuals helping to fight fires in Washington state,” he wrote on social media.
The Bear Gulch Fire erupted in July, caused by human activity, official information shows. Just 13 percent of the blaze has been contained as it continues “creeping” through mature conifer woodland.
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