As firefighters continue to battle devastating fires raging in the Los Angeles region, some have brought up California agencies donating firefighting supplies to Ukraine.
At least five wildfires have burned through almost 30,000 acres since Tuesday, growing fast in high winds and causing at least five deaths.
More than 100,000 people have been ordered to evacuate, with the most recent mandatory evacuation orders coming on Wednesday evening after a new blaze, the Sunset Fire, broke out in the Hollywood Hills.
Firefighters are continuing to fight the Palisades Fire west of Los Angeles, which has become the most destructive in Los Angeles history, as well as the Eaton Fire north of Pasadena, the Hurst Fire in the San Fernando Valley and another blaze near Acton.
The Claim
Multiple people have noted on social media that California fire departments have donated firefighting equipment to Ukraine.
One X user with the handle @OcrazioCornPop, wrote in a post on the platform on Wednesday: "FLASHBACK: California donated Firefighting Equipment to Ukraine in 2022."
The post said the San Francisco Fire Department and other Bay Area agencies had donated equipment in August 2022.
It added that the Los Angeles County Fire Department donated supplies in March 2022, fire agencies in Santa Barbara County donated supplies in April 2022, and that the city of San Jose donated $1 million worth of safety equipment in July 2022.
The Facts
Fire departments in several states have donated safety equipment to Ukraine following Russia's invasion in February 2022.
Oleg Skachko, a Ukrainian American firefighter in Clifton, New Jersey, sought donations of used firefighting gear to send to Ukraine, according to NJ.com.
It quickly grew into a national effort, and fire departments in at least 10 states had sent safety equipment to Ukraine by April 2022, according to Fox News.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department said in March 2022 that it would gather and donate surplus equipment and gear to help first responders in Ukraine. Those items included hoses, nozzles, turnouts, helmets, body armor, and other associated personal protective equipment, according to a news release on the department's website.
"As Ukrainian firefighters continue to work under extreme peril to remove victims with limited resources, we felt the need to step up and help in some way," Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl L. Osby said in a statement.
A number of fire agencies in Santa Barbara County donated safety equipment for firefighters in Ukraine, according to an April 2022 report from local news station KSBY.
The San Francisco Fire Department and other agencies in the Bay Area also donated equipment to aid a retired fire chief's effort to send supplies to Ukraine, according to an August 2022 report from Patch.com.
The San Jose Fire Department announced the donation of safety equipment worth more than $1 million to Ukraine in July 2022, according to a news release from the city. The donation included 373 self-contained breathing apparatus air packs, 600 mask-mounted regulators, 183 air-breathing cylinders and several hundred self-contained breathing apparatus masks to the relief organizations Nova Ukraine and Firefighter Air Ukraine, who would then distribute the equipment to first responders across Ukraine.
"The San Jose Fire Department is extremely grateful to provide this safety equipment to Ukrainian firefighters who are working so hard to save lives and protect their community every day," the department's chief Robert Sapien said in a statement at the time.
California also shipped supplies to Ukraine in 2022, sending at least five, 50-bed field medical stations along with thousands of pieces of protective gear between May and March that year.
"California has stood firm in our support for Ukraine since day one of Russia's unprovoked invasion," Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement in May that year.
"Our support will save lives and help the people of Ukraine as they experience unspeakable atrocities, and we will continue to support Ukraine's brave fight against tyranny and oppression."
The Ruling
True.
A number of fire departments in California did donate firefighting supplies to be sent to Ukraine in 2022.
The state has also sent medical supplies and protective gear to help first responders in Ukraine.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek
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