Gavin Newsom Sends Thanks to Texas as Wildfires Rage

Governor Gavin Newsom has thanked Texas Governor Greg Abbott for sending help to fight California’s wildfires.

Less than a week after igniting, California’s Park Fire has become the state’s sixth-largest wildfire in history. The blaze, which is affecting parts of Butte, Tehama, Shasta and Plumas counties, grew to span more than 360,000 acres—about half the size of Rhode Island.

On July 28, Abbott announced that he was deploying firefighters, fire engines and emergency management personnel after the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services put in a request.

The following day, Newsom posted on X, formerly Twitter, “Thank you to Texas and @GregAbbott_TX for sending aid while California battles wildfires across our state.”

This year, there have been 4,574 wildfires—resulting in one civilian death, 59 damaged buildings and 232 others destroyed, Cal Fire’s most recent update said. In total, 347,882 emergency responses have taken place.

The Texas Division of Emergency Management, the Texas A&M Forest Service and the Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System prepared more than 100 firefighters, more than 25 fire engines, command vehicles and equipment for California.

In his announcement on Sunday, Abbot said: “Texans understand the urgency of responding to wildfires, and our country is stronger when we come together in times of crisis. I am grateful for all the firefighters and emergency management personnel as they answer the call to protect their fellow Americans.”

“I pray for the brave first responders who are battling these destructive wildfires in California,” he added.

Texas and California are working together under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which is a state-to-state mutual aid system that enables states to provide assistance and share resources with another state in response to a disaster or emergency.

Jay Tracy, the deputy fire marshal at the Fresno Fire Department, previously told Newsweek that the Park Fire was one of the “most complex” wildfires that California officials had dealt with in a long time. Fresno Fire Captain Shane Brown told reporters last week that the department sent personnel to help the crews.

“The area in kind of the middle of the fire is very, very rural, very desolate, very kind of … wildnerness-y,” Tracy said. “And so access to those areas are very hard.”

The Butte County District Attorney’s Office said last week that 42-year-old Ronnie Stout II had been arrested on accusations of arson in connection with the Park Fire, which exploded Wednesday night into Thursday. Authorities said Stout pushed a car that was set on fire into a gully, igniting the blaze.