Sun Aug 31 01:36:08 UTC 2025: **News Article:**
**Firefighters Detained by ICE Spark Outrage Amidst Washington Wildfire**
*Tacoma, Washington – August 31, 2025* – Two firefighters contracted to battle the devastating Bear Gulch fire in Washington State have been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), sparking outrage and raising concerns about the impact on firefighting efforts.
The incident unfolded on Wednesday when Border Patrol agents, at the request of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), conducted identity checks on the firefighting crews. The BLM stated that they had terminated contracts with the firefighting companies after an unspecified criminal investigation and requested the assistance of Border Patrol to verify the identities of 44 members of the company’s work crews. Two individuals were subsequently arrested for being in the U.S. illegally, while the remaining 42 were escorted off the federally owned land.
U.S. Representative Emily Randall, representing the district where the detention center is located, confirmed the detention of the two firefighters after attempting to visit them at the ICE facility in Tacoma. She was denied access but confirmed officials there confirmed they were holding the two people working for companies that had been contracted to help fight the 9,000-acre Bear Gulch fire in the Olympic National Forest.
The firefighters’ detention has drawn sharp criticism, with Rep. Randall questioning the timing and coordination between the BLM and Border Patrol. “What’s really troubling to me this week is the unprecedented coordination between BLM and Border Patrol to raid an active response site,” she stated, emphasizing the critical role of the fire crews in preventing the wildfire from spreading to populated areas.
One of the detained firefighters is being represented by a Portland, Oregon law firm. The lawyer, Stephen Manning, said his client is an Oregon resident who came to the United States with his family at the age of four about 19 years ago and was awaiting a response to a visa application made after he and his family were victims of a crime in Oregon.
The Department of Homeland Security maintains that the detained individuals were providing support roles and were not actively engaged in fighting the fire at the time of their arrest, asserting that the arrests did not affect firefighting.
However, Washington State Department of Resources Commissioner Dave Upthegrove expressed concern and highlighted the broader implications of the incident. “This is all occurring at a time when the Trump administration’s crude and inhumane approach to immigration enforcement has intentionally and unnecessarily stoked fear and mistrust among members of the public — including firefighters putting their lives on the line to protect our State,” he said.
The Bear Gulch fire, which started on July 6, was only 13% contained as of Saturday.
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