Military to Deploy 200 Soldiers to Battle California Wildfires

The U.S. military said it is preparing to send roughly 200 active-duty U.S. Army soldiers to help fight the California wildfires, Fox News reported Monday.

The soldiers, who have engineering specialties to fight blazes, will deploy from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State in upcoming days, said two defense officials, Fox News reported.

The unit will be in training on fighting fires this week, the report said.

The soldiers are from the 14th Brigade Battalion of the 2nd Infantry Division, and specialize in demolition and construction, according to Fox News.

The troops would join crews that are flying four active-duty Air Force C-130 cargo planes flying over the state to drop water and fire retardant liquids. California national guard units are also fighting the wildfires, Fox News noted.

President Donald Trump on Sunday tweeted that “bad environmental laws” lead to such wildfires being worse because of the lack of available water. 

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