‘Firefighter arson’: Cal Fire employee arrested for allegedly starting forest fires; agency chief responds

Robert Hernandez, 38, has been accused of ‘firefighter arson’ for allegedly setting fire to five years during an already bad year for wildfires.

A California firefighter was arrested Friday morning, September 20, for allegedly starting several forest fires in Sonoma County. He was booked into the county's Main Adult Detention Facility.

The Bridge Fire flares up in the Big Pines hills near Wrightwood, California, on September 12, 2024. A wildfire in the hills near Los Angeles exploded overnight, torching dozens of homes as its footprint swelled 1,000 percent by September 11, 2024. (AFP)

Amid a sad year for wildfires in the US state, 38-year-old Robert Hernandez, an apparatus engineer with Cal Fire has been accused of setting forest land ablaze near towns like Geyserville, Healdsburg and Windsor between August 15 and September 14.

According to several reports, Hernandez's alleged actions in the Northern California town of Healdsburg did not result in any major mishaps, thanks to local residents and other fire agency workers putting out the fire before the incident took a hazardous toll on the area. Cal Fire said that these fires burned less than an acre of land combined. Hernandez apparently set five fires while he was off duty.

Cal Fire responds to an employee allegedly responsible for ‘firefighter arson’

Speaking on the arson suspect's alleged transgression despite his post as a firefighter, Joe Tyler, the director and fire chief of Cal Fire said on Friday: "I am appalled to learn one of our employees would violate the public's trust and attempt to tarnish the tireless work of the 12,000 women and men of Cal Fire.

Robert Hernandez faces six felony counts and is being held on $2 million bail, per The New York Times' report. He is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday.

This case of “firefighter arson” adds to the cases of other areas in California burning up this year. Notably, nearly 1 million acres of land – about three times more than last year – have witnessed the misfortune.

Hours ago, Cal Fire announced a joint venture aiming to “reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve urban forests, boost climate resilience, and provide green career opportunities in disadvantaged communities.” The state's main firefighting agency tweeted, “Big news for California's urban forests! Through this joint venture, CAL FIRE and the @forestservice are awarding nearly $31M to 22 projects through the 2024 Inflation Reduction Act.”