A group photo of all of the soldiers and volunteer personnel who helped distribute supplies to Los Angeles wildfire victims in California at 9thirtyla, Jan. 18, 2025. (David Crosby/U.S. Army)
About 20 soldiers from the National Training Center and other units at Fort Irwin in California joined dozens of volunteers across the state on Jan. 18 in Los Angeles to distribute food, clothing and hygiene items to victims of the wildfires.
The L.A. wildfires in January were among the most destructive natural disasters in California’s modern history. Thousands of homes and buildings were destroyed — leaving entire communities devastated and thousands of residents displaced.
Married couple Sgt. Maiah Jackson from Cleveland, Texas, and Sgt. Tijhani Jackson from Kansas City, Mo., were among the soldiers volunteering at the scene. They are both Army 88N Transportation Management Coordinators stationed at Fort Irwin.
“California is known for wildfires. What makes this a bigger deal than most [wildfires] is just seeing how detrimental it was,” Tijhani Jackson said in an interview with Stars and Stripes on Tuesday.
Maiah Jackson said she felt strongly about wanting to help the victims when she first heard about the wildfires and seeing the tragedies people were experiencing.
“I was sympathetic to how they felt emotionally,” she said.
The soldiers left the base at 7 a.m. and traveled to 9thirtyla, set up as an evacuation center for wildfire victims and first responders at the time. Until 5 p.m., they helped move packs of water, materials and equipment to designated areas and distributed the items to people who showed up in need. Volunteer personnel also assisted as translators — mostly Spanish — for local residents with a language barrier.
“It was well organized for a huge warehouse that had a lot of supplies and a lot of equipment. For us, I was just glad we were actually making an impact rather than sitting on the sidelines. We were actually in the mix of it and helping out people,” Tijhani Jackson said.
Like in any emergency situation, the soldiers had to put aside their emotions and focus on making sure the people got what they needed.
“We were there to help them as much as possible. … They’re in survival mode,” Tijhani Jackson said.
Fort Irwin soldiers and volunteer personnel unload packs of bottled water from a truck to distribute to Los Angeles wildfire victims at 9thirtyla in California, Jan. 18, 2025. (Ian Cabrera/U.S. Army)
Fort Irwin soldiers and volunteer personnel help distribute supplies to victims of the Los Angeles wildfires at 9thirtyla in California, Jan. 18, 2025. (Ian Cabrera/U.S. Army)
A soldier at the reception table during an volunteer event to help distribute supplies to Los Angeles wildfire victims at 9thirtyla in California, Jan. 18, 2025. (David Crosby/U.S. Army)
The Palisades and Eaton wildfires, two of the deadliest fires, have been fully contained since Saturday after nearly a month of burning and killing 29 people. L.A. will be focusing on recovery and rebuilding efforts after California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Jan. 23 to provide over $2.5 billion for the city’s restoration.
The military had a significant role in helping fight and contain the wildfires consuming the metropolitan area last month. Over 1,800 troops from the California National Guard supported federal and local firefighting crews, military police and eight C-130 aircraft equipped with modular airborne firefighting systems. Ten Navy helicopters equipped with water-delivery buckets were also sent by the Defense Department for additional support.
“I hope the victims are able to recover from what they’ve lost. I hope this gives them better resilience. I hope this gives them better hope for the future and whatever they have to endure though this time,” Maiah Jackson said.
