No, California isn’t using fleet of electric fire trucks to fight fires

A viral rumor is claiming that 45 of the Los Angeles fire department’s trucks are electric and take 10 hours each day to recharge, hampering efforts to contain the wildfires in California. But the post isn’t accurate. Let’s look at the facts.

Quick Look

No
The Los Angeles Fire Department does not have 45 electric fire trucks.
Yes
The department has a single fire truck with an electric engine in its entire fleet.
No
The LAFD’s electric fire engine does not take 10 hours to recharge.
Yes
This claim originated on a satirical page, then spread online with no disclaimer.

The Takeaway

Online claims that appeal to preconceived biases often go unexamined since they feel accurate. In this case, people who believe the California wildfires are exacerbated by “woke” policies in the state, such as the use of electric vehicles, might accept this claim as genuine without any further investigation. Here are a few simple steps to resist the pull of confirmation bias:

Check for evidence. A statement on social media unaccompanied by links or any other supporting evidence should be viewed with skepticism.
Check the source. If a claim comes from a source that is unfamiliar, take time to look at that profile and examine its post history.
Look for context. A simple web search can provide additional information. Looking for “Los Angeles,” “wildfires” and “electric fire trucks” results in multiple fact checks for this claim, as well as news articles about LAFD’s purchase of a single electric fire engine.

Editor's note: This page has been edited for clarification.

The 5 Factors

We’ve determined that this viral rumor is misleading or false based on its failure to pass the following credibility factors. Please note that these factors do not represent degrees of falsehood. A post that fails a single factor is generally just as false as a post that fails all five.