The following News Release was issued by the Office of Governor Tim Walz and Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan
January 24, 2025
[ST. PAUL, MN] – Governor Tim Walz today announced that Minnesota will send a crew of wildland firefighters from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to support response efforts amid ongoing wildfires in Southern California.“Minnesota stands with Southern California and will do whatever we can to help the thousands of families impacted by wildfires,” said Governor Walz. “I am immensely proud of our emergency responders who are stepping up and providing critical support. They are protecting communities and saving lives.”
“It’s heartbreaking to see the disastrous impacts of the Southern California wildfires on human life, property, infrastructure, and resources,” said DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen. “I’m proud that DNR’s wildland firefighters are answering the call to support these critical and life-saving response efforts with fellow emergency responders.”
The DNR crew, which departed from the Minnesota Interagency Fire Center in Grand Rapids Friday morning, will receive their assignment once they arrive in Southern California. While there, the 10-person crew may be asked to help support ongoing fire response efforts or respond to new fire starts as Southern California continues to face extreme fire conditions. Members of this crew are highly skilled and specially trained in all aspects of wildland fire suppression, including structure triage, fire line construction, pump operations, and chainsaw use.
“The DNR has been closely following the situation in California, and we were ready to support when the call came in,” said Paul Lundgren, Wildfire Section Manager with the Minnesota DNR.
When the fires initially developed in early January, California was able to immediately access local and regional resources. As firefighting efforts continue, additional resources are needed and those are now coming from greater distances. The Minnesota DNR’s partnerships with state and federal agencies through mutual aid agreements facilitates sharing of wildland firefighting resources to support others in times of need.
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