Privatized firefighting in California?

November 7, 2007 9:44 AM

Were private insurance companies putting out fires for their high-end customers during the recent California wildfires?

I just heard Naomi Klein (author of The Shock Doctrine) in a radio interview say that people in California reported seeing private firefighting units (working, specifically, for AIG) attempting to save the homes of their clients while the surrounding houses burned. Has anyone seen anything in the media confirming this? Anecdotal evidence from eyewitnesses?

posted by azure_swing to society & culture (9 comments total)

LA Times article on "concierge level" fire protection.
posted by jaimev at 9:53 AM on November 7, 2007

This is not quite the same, but related.
posted by phoenixy at 9:53 AM on November 7, 2007

Well, I know this happened in Idaho recently. We may have even had a discussion about it on this site, but I can't remember where/when.

Possibly conflated? Or maybe AIG had crews in California, too, I'm not sure.
posted by empyrean at 9:53 AM on November 7, 2007

Look Here.
posted by notyou at 9:57 AM on November 7, 2007

Some property owners and even an insurance company are finding new ways to protect homes in fire-prone areas like Ventura County, either by purchasing personal fire-retardant systems or by hiring private crews that come out and add supplemental foam shields in advance of the flames. Some of the services can cost thousands of dollars
posted by growabrain at 9:58 AM on November 7, 2007

This bit is interesting:

Until 1865, when the Metropolitan Fire Bridge Act was passed in the U.K., insurance companies had their own firefighters and were responsible for protecting their customers' homes and other buildings. That was the case in other countries as well, including the U.S. Customers were given medallions to place on their homes, and firefighters would look for their insurance company's ``firemark'' before extinguishing a blaze.

posted by notyou at 9:59 AM on November 7, 2007

In some old/historic areas, you can still see the 'firemark' plates on old houses. There are a few very old buildings in Old Town Alexandria, VA, that have them. They look very similar to the "historic building" plaques that most old buildings have, but if you look closely they're much older. The house lived in by George Washington (pretty much unavoidable on any walking tour of that area) has one prominently displayed.

I found this article interesting, and I don't think it's been mentioned so far.
posted by Kadin2048 at 10:39 AM on November 7, 2007

Yeah, I remember seeing firemarks on old buildings when I was visiting England. That was actually how homeowner's insurance started if I remember the story right. You paid a private firefighting company to protect your home; if it burned down they paid you to build a new one.
posted by Doohickie at 12:12 PM on November 7, 2007

[a few comments removed -- putting a derail in small text does not make it not a derail. please don't do that. Start a MeFi thread or email some folks.]
posted by jessamyn at 6:08 PM on November 7, 2007