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California fire captain reflects on encounter with rookie firefighting son at Palisades Fire
City of Merced Fire Captain Bryan Akers described what it was like working the Los Angeles wildfires and bumping into his son on call.
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A Fresno-area fire captain in California who is helping battle the Los Angeles wildfires got an unexpected moment of joy when he bumped into his son while on a call.
“It was just a happenstance, really. We were on the same dirt road out in the middle of nowhere, and I just kind of took the opportunity to go say hi to my boy,” Bryan Akers, a captain with the Merced Fire Department, told Fox News Digital.
Akers, who has served with the Merced Fire Department for more than 22 years, followed in the steps of his father and great-grandfather, who were also firefighters. Now, his son, Mason, who is starting his first year as a firefighter with the Cal Fire Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit, is following in the footsteps of the rest of his family.
Through his 22 years of service, Akers said he has covered more than 30 large campaign fires in his career and was able to work a few with his father, but he was not expecting to get to work with Mason so soon.
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Merced, Calif., Fire Department Capt. Bryan Akers bumped into his son, first-year firefighter Mason Akers, while responding to the Los Angeles County wildfires. (Bryan Akers)
“It was something that we’ve been hoping would happen over the course of his career. But it happened a lot sooner than it did for me with my father,” Akers said. “It took about six years before I was on the same incident as him and was able to snag a photo. So it was just a cool dad moment for me.”
Akers said his son is with a great crew, and he has faith that they are looking out for him as he battles one of the biggest fires of his young career.
“I just have to have faith that he knows what to do. And I remind him … it’s my way of saying, ‘I love you,’ is when I text him ‘LCES.’ It’s an acronym that we use out here: lookouts, communications, escape routes, safety zones. It’s just kind of my way of saying, ‘Take care of yourself, keep your head on a swivel, and just stay safe,'” Akers explained.
Bryan Akers, a third-generation firefighter, shared a snapshot of his great-grandfather, who was the first firefighter to begin the long line of Akers firefighters. (Bryan Akers)
Akers said it’s been exciting for him to see Mason follow his career path, but he never pushed him to go into the same profession.
“I’m just really proud of the work he’s doing. I never pushed him to be a firefighter. My father never pushed me to be a firefighter. It’s just something that kind of called to us, if you will. And it sounds kind of cliché, but I could not imagine myself doing anything else,” Akers said.
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Fire Capt. Bryan Akers snapped a photo of his first fire coverage with son Mason while responding to the Los Angeles wildfires. (Bryan Akers)
“And when he told me that he wanted to be a firefighter, it was obviously a proud moment for me. And to see him out there doing it now, I couldn’t be happier. It’s obviously bittersweet considering the circumstances, us meeting out here. But as a dad, I wasn’t going to miss that opportunity to give him a hug, tell him I love him and snap that picture and be on our way.”
When asked how he would compare the Los Angeles fires to others he has worked in the past, Akers said it was very comparable in terms of destruction to the 2018 Camp Fire, one of the most deadly and destructive fires to strike California.
Fire Capt. Bryan Akers described what it was like seeing the Palisades Fire while he was responding to the Hurst Fire. (Bryan Akers)
“It’s very destructive. It’s devastating for a lot of people losing their homes, regardless of their status. But it’s pretty similar to the Camp Fire I was on in Paradise. It’s hard to imagine just the sheer destruction and seeing it in person, it can be overwhelming,” Akers said.
The Camp Fire is also featured in a new Netflix documentary, “Fire in Paradise,” where survivors share firsthand accounts of living through the catastrophic 2018 fire that ravaged the town of Paradise and became California’s deadliest wildfire.
Akers also described another lethal fire, the 2017 Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, and what it was like compared to the Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires.
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Fire Capt. Bryan Akers said he was able to work the Telegraph Fire with his father in 2008. (Bryan Akers)
“That was a different experience. We actually had a wind event occur while we were there. And you sometimes wonder how this many firefighters are here and how you can lose homes. I kind of found out firsthand when that wind is blowing like it does, the Santa Ana [winds], there’s literally nothing you can do,” Akers said. “There’s just, there’s more fire than there were firefighters. It’s just hard to keep up.”
Akers said he has been impressed by the state and nationwide support for all those who have been affected by these fires.
“There’s been an overwhelming outpouring of help from the community. The people down here are amazing. They’ve already been accepting donations at fire stations and here at our base camps to the point where they are kind of overfull and turning people away,” Akers said. “Unfortunately, they want to help, it’s just that they can only accept so much. I’ve never seen that kind of support from a community. It’s been pretty impressive.”
Akers, who was assigned to Task Force 5128, said there were firefighters from all over the world in the area to come lend aid and help fight the fires.
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“There’s so many firefighters here. We’ve seen them internationally from Mexico, British Columbia, so many from out of state, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and obviously all over California here to help. And it’s a pretty impressive endeavor to bring this fire under control,” Akers said.
Akers added that they were also given Starlink equipment for internet access while on assignment, which he said would be beneficial for communicating while they are deployed and even reach family and friends to check in after shifts.
“It’s looking really good out there right now. A lot of the weather, the wind events that they were expecting a few days ago, it never materialized. So that gave us an opportunity to gain more of an upper hand on the fire. And it’s been looking really good and looking better every day.”
While his shift has since ended, he said Mason is still out working the Palisades Fire.
Stepheny Price is writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Story tips and ideas can be sent to [email protected]