The publication is reproduced in full below:
BETTER EQUIPPING FIREFIGHTERS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Valadao) for 5 minutes.
Mr. VALADAO. Mr. Speaker, last year, California set a record for the most acres burned in a single year, 4.1 million acres.
Already in 2021, devastating fires have burned through 1.6 million acres of our State. Hundreds, if not thousands, of residents are currently under evacuation orders, uncertain if they will have a home to return to once the orders are lifted.
With another heat wave on its way, fighting the flames will be even more challenging, and the risks are even greater.
Each year, California wildfires destroy our communities and put first responders and our firefighters in danger. As these men and women sacrifice their safety, it is imperative we provide firefighters with the latest and most advanced firefighting technologies.
Containerized aerial firefighting systems provide ground crews with dependable cover from the air by providing a rapid surge of retardant to attack these fires from multiple points of contact.
These fires can spread and expand at alarming rates, making rapid and aggressive containment strategies absolutely critical.
We must provide firefighters with the tools and resources to do their courageous work effectively and safely.
Billions of dollars are spent each year on recovering and restoring the environment and helping to rebuild communities after wildfires.
By investing in technology to increase our capacity to fight fires, we can reduce the recovery spending and preserve California's renowned parkland and countless families' homes and irreplaceable belongings.
As California faces several devastating wildfires burning through our communities and beloved forestland, I ask my colleagues and the U.S. Forest Service to consider investment in containerized aerial firefighting systems and other technologies and resources.
We have a responsibility to protect our communities, our environment, and the firefighters who run toward danger and sacrifice their safety for the safety of others.
To do so, we must equip these brave men and women with the tools they need.
Again, I ask the Forest Service and my colleagues to examine the latest aerial firefighting capabilities as well as additional resources to protect our state and communities.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 165
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