On the recordApril 8, 2025
My name is George Whitesides, and I represent California's 27th Congressional District. Just 3 days after I was sworn in to Congress to serve my first term this year, wildfires broke out across southern California, forcing 200,000 people to evacuate, burning over 57,000 acres of land, damaging or destroying 18,000 homes, and taking the lives of 30 individuals. Two weeks later, the Hughes fire erupted in my own district near Castaic, right near where this picture behind me was taken. It forced over 30,000 people to evacuate. Compared to most, we were relatively lucky. Given wind conditions and the brave work of our firefighters, many of whom were employed by the U.S. Forest Service, the fire was quickly contained. As southern California began to emerge from the devastation and focus on rebuilding, firefighters and other fire service workers with the U.S. Forest Service were abruptly terminated by the Trump administration. Days or weeks after saving our lives, they were left out to dry with no explanation. One of these employees in my own district was Jasmin Dominguez, a GIS technician, who literally mapped out the fires as they spread. I brought Jasmin as my guest to the State of the Union where we talked about how difficult it would be for local fire chiefs to control the fires without the maps that she provided. Now, we are preparing to go into another bad fire season. People are scared.…
