A Fresno-area fire captain in California who is helping battle the Los Angeles wildfires got an unexpected moment of joy when he bumped into his son while on a call.
“It was just a happenstance, really. We were on the same dirt road out in the middle of nowhere, and I just kind of took the opportunity to go say hi to my boy,” Bryan Akers, a captain with the Merced Fire Department, told Fox News Digital.
Akers, who has served with the Merced Fire Department for more than 22 years, followed in the steps of his father and great-grandfather, who were also firefighters. Now, his son, Mason, who is starting his first year as a firefighter with the Cal Fire Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit, is following in the footsteps of the rest of his family.
Through his 22 years of service, Akers said he has covered more than 30 large campaign fires in his career and was able to work a few with his father, but he was not expecting to get to work with Mason so soon.
Fire Capt. Bryan Akers said he was able to work the Telegraph Fire with his father in 2008. (Bryan Akers)
“That was a different experience. We actually had a wind event occur while we were there. And you sometimes wonder how this many firefighters are here and how you can lose homes. I kind of found out firsthand when that wind is blowing like it does, the Santa Ana [winds], there’s literally nothing you can do,” Akers said. “There’s just, there’s more fire than there were firefighters. It’s just hard to keep up.”
Akers said he has been impressed by the state and nationwide support for all those who have been affected by these fires.
“There’s been an overwhelming outpouring of help from the community. The people down here are amazing. They’ve already been accepting donations at fire stations and here at our base camps to the point where they are kind of overfull and turning people away,” Akers said. “Unfortunately, they want to help, it’s just that they can only accept so much. I’ve never seen that kind of support from a community. It’s been pretty impressive.”
Akers, who was assigned to Task Force 5128, said there were firefighters from all over the world in the area to come lend aid and help fight the fires.
“There’s so many firefighters here. We’ve seen them internationally from Mexico, British Columbia, so many from out of state, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and obviously all over California here to help. And it’s a pretty impressive endeavor to bring this fire under control,” Akers said.
Akers added that they were also given Starlink equipment for internet access while on assignment, which he said would be beneficial for communicating while they are deployed and even reach family and friends to check in after shifts.
“It’s looking really good out there right now. A lot of the weather, the wind events that they were expecting a few days ago, it never materialized. So that gave us an opportunity to gain more of an upper hand on the fire. And it’s been looking really good and looking better every day.”
While his shift has since ended, he said Mason is still out working the Palisades Fire.
Stepheny Price is writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Story tips and ideas can be sent to [email protected]
