Murray rips Border Patrol arrests of wildfire crew members: ‘Immigration policy is fundamentally sick’

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) on Thursday condemned the Trump administration for the reported arrest of two wildfire crew members working to contain the Bear Gulch fire engulfing Olympic National Forest.

The Seattle Times reported on Wednesday that two private contractor crews were targeted by immigration officials who requested their identification while the groups were working to contain the largest wildfire in Washington state.

“Trump has undercut our wildland firefighting abilities in more ways than one—from decimating the Forest Service and pushing out thousands of critical support staff, to now apparently detaining firefighters on the job,” Murray said in a Thursday statement.

“This administration’s immigration policy is fundamentally sick,” she continued, adding that “no one should assume this was necessary or appropriate.”

The Hill reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol office in Port Angeles, the entity responsible for the operation, for comment.

Those on the scene said federal agents used expletives directed at the crew on site and prevented them from moving freely, according to The Seattle Times.

“You risked your life out here to save the community,” one firefighter, who requested to remain unnamed, told the newspaper. “This is how they treat us.”

Flames from the fire, which scorched 9,000 acres, remained 87 percent uncontained as of Wednesday, local officials said.

“Here in the Pacific Northwest, wildfires can, and have, burned entire towns to the ground. We count on our brave firefighters, who put their lives on the line, to keep our communities safe—this new Republican policy to detain firefighters on the job is as immoral as it is dangerous,” Murray said of the contractors’ arrest.

“What’s next? Will Trump start detaining immigrant servicemembers? Or will he just maintain his current policy of deporting Purple Heart veterans?” she continued.

The Washington lawmaker said she’s reached out to the Trump administration requesting immediate answers on “the whereabouts of the detained firefighters, and the administration’s current policy regarding immigration enforcement during active wildfires.”

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