LA’s rich accused of hiring $2000/hr private firefighters to protect their property amid devastating fires

A disaster can hit anyone, but some people have better resources to combat the same. However, when a tragedy affects many, it can be considered tone-deaf to divert all resources for personal benefit. Celebrities and rich people in LA's Pacific Palisades, affected by the house fires, have been criticized for using their financial power to hire private firefighters for their homes. This move by the area's affluent residents has sparked outrage as per the Daily Mail.

Celebrities like Kim Kardashian have been accused of hogging vital resources to protect their homes as fires ravage the Palisades village, according to the outlet. They’ve also faced criticism for wasting water, knowing they could afford the fines. The city had imposed water restrictions, allowing residents to water their lawns only two days a week for eight minutes to conserve water for emergencies. However, Kardashian was fined for using 232,000 gallons of water, exceeding her allocated amount. "These celebrities have a sense of entitlement. Everyone was told to cut back on water precisely for this situation, to preserve it to fight fires. They carried on watering because they could afford the fines," one of Kardashian's neighbors remarked.

Other celebrities like Kevin Hart and Sylvester Stallone have also been fined because of the overuse of water. Since then, Kardashian has implemented water-saving measures in her home. However, anger continues to rise over celebrities hiring private firefighters to protect their homes, at a cost of $2,000 per hour. "My phone has been ringing off the hook. Demand has never been higher," said Chris Dunn, owner of Covered 6, who provides the service. "This week’s events have shown you can’t trust the city to protect your property. I have the money, so why not?" an anonymous wealthy individual remarked. Meanwhile, many are trying to evacuate as the fires have scorched over 37,000 acres and destroyed nearly 12,000 properties.

"Does anyone have access to private firefighters to protect our home in Pacific Palisades? Need to act fast here. All neighbor's houses burning. Will pay any amount," a wealthy resident in the area posted on X, according to the LA Times. The post has since been deleted. Many online users called the post tone-deaf, as reported by the outlet. Matthias Gafni (@mgafni on X) shared an update on the fires, writing, "Private firefighters guard this Hollywood Hills house from #SunsetFire. They’ve set up sprinklers to cascade water from the second-story eaves. They will guard all night."

In an update, the person wrote, "Turns out the private firefighters protecting the Hollywood Hills mansion from the #SunsetFire yesterday were hired by Miley Cyrus’ talent manager." Many people took to the comments section of the post to express their thoughts on the incident. @SophiaDarkstars wrote, "So the private firefighters are using public water? Sounds illegal." @thepinkcrab commented, "I don’t begrudge anyone trying to save their home… but if there are truly organizations out there with equipment and means they should be working pro bono right now." @dvaughnmad remarked, "Where did they get the water? There were many areas of the fire that had no water."