Science Fiction Dictionary
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

 

California Fireman Arrested For Starting Fires

A California firefighter was arrested for allegedly setting five fires in northern California.

Robert Hernandez, a 38-year-old fire apparatus engineer with Cal Fire, the state’s main firefighting agency, was arrested on suspicion of setting fires on forest land near the Northern California towns of Geyserville, Healdsburg and Windsor between Aug. 15 and Sept. 14.

The fires remained small, burning less than an acre of land combined, because local residents and firefighters worked quickly to extinguish them, according to Cal Fire. Mr. Hernandez, a resident of Healdsburg who was accused of setting the fires while off duty, was booked into the Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility on six felony counts and was being held on $2 million bail.

“I am appalled to learn one of our employees would violate the public’s trust and attempt to tarnish the tireless work of the 12,000 women and men of Cal Fire,” Joe Tyler, the director and fire chief of Cal Fire, said on Friday.

Science fiction fans recall the startling reversal of roles in Ray Bradbury's 1953 novel Fahrenheit 451, when Captain Beatty tells Montag "Burn all, burn everything. Fire is bright and fire is clean." Apparently, this is not uncommon.

A 2016 report by the National Volunteer Fire Council determined, based on media accounts, that more than 100 firefighters in the United States were arrested each year on arson charges. The report said that they represented a tiny percentage of the nation’s firefighters, and that motives varied, from those who wanted to be a hero by putting out their own blazes to others who wanted more firefighting action or suffered from psychological disorders.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 9/21/2024)

Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.

| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |

Would you like to contribute a story tip? It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add it here.

Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )

Related News Stories - (" Culture ")

California Fireman Arrested For Starting Fires
'Fire is bright and fire is clean.' - Ray Brandbury, 1953.

Tether Cryptocurrency Flow Rate US$190Bn Per Day
'Alex did not find it surprising that people... were electronically minting their own cash.' - Bruce Sterling, 1994.

Poul Anderson's 'Brain Wave'
"Everybody and his dog, it seemed, wanted to live out in the country; transportation and communication were no longer isolating factors." - Poul Anderson, 1953.

Waymo Cars Shout At Each Other, Autonomously
'My cars talk to one another. I have no doubt about it...' - Isaac Asimov, 1953.

 

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.

 

 

 

 

Science Fiction Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's   1950's
1960's   1970's
1980's   1990's
2000's   2010's

Current News

California Fireman Arrested For Starting Fires
'Fire is bright and fire is clean.'

Robots Need A Better Sense Of Touch
'First, it rubbed my arms...'

MouthPad Supports Head And Tongue Tracking
'The operation that had transformed half his body... had located the control switchboard in his teeth.'

REALLY Remote Control Excavators
'It takes over a second for the signal to get to the Moon...'

Disney Helping Robots Dance
Dance, Robots, Dance.

Kolors Virtual-Try-On Predicted, And TRIED, By Harry Harrison
'Bill blinked at his own face under the plumed helmet...'

Detecting Drones In Ukraine With Candy (Sukork)
'...a robot detector circuit closed, activating a bell."

Nevada Will Use AI To Decide Worker Benefits
'They had screwed up and been blacklisted by Manna.'

Tether Cryptocurrency Flow Rate US$190Bn Per Day
'Alex did not find it surprising that people... were electronically minting their own cash.'

First Trips To Mars Announced By Elon Musk
'I had determined that my first attempt should be a visit to Mars.'

WaPOCHI Micro-Mobility Robot Follows Like A Pet With Your Bags
To follow the user like a pet while carrying their cargo!

Ultra-Realistic Robotic Arowana Robo-Fish
'Deveet unhooked his catch and laid it on the bank beside him. It was a metal fish.'

GITAI R1 Lunar Rover Like NASA Robonaut Centaur
'...waldoes in the screen followed in exact, simultaneous parallelism.'

Meshworm Soft Robot, With Peristaltic Crawling, Is Getting Better
'Seen close it was not completely flexible, but made instead of pivoted and smoothly finished segments.'

Mushroom 'Robot' Is Just A Start
'Some unknown race ... decided to help them out.'

Tesla Electric 'Giga Train' Operational In Germany
'...the cars are wedge-shaped at both ends.'

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories

Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.