If I Was the New Gub'nor of Californyuh...

With hellfighting already the most important job in the state, the fires ain’t going away and they’ll pro’lly end up being a year-round constant threat. Sometimes being told to evacuate before you even knew there's a fire.

We’re fucked.

So I negotiate with the feds for Beale AFB. That patch of nowhere east of Marysville. The base doesn’t serve any real purpose these days but it’s perfect for a standing fleet of firefighting heroes. An absolute at-ready Fire Force Base ideally positioned to cover the North State at the blare of a fire horn.

Staff it with professional forest firefighting aces but also recruit non-violent and able-bodied state prisoners as full-time firefighters. Training year-round. For the term of their sentence but with that redemption arc. It’s a tough gig but better than a cell. And any bad acting gets you back in the pen.

Rehabilitate a percentage of the prison guards into being supervisors. No fence around the base but the threat of ending up back in prison. No booze and mandatory monthly drug-testing. For prisoners and civilian staff alike. Most people aren't good at firefighting when they're baked and a sudden fire knows no clock.

The barracks stand for singles but the housing area allows for families to reunite. To grow strong. There’s already a hospital, a public school and lots of recreational facilities. A theater.

Beale is an airport with a small town attached.

When contract served there’s also the opportunity to stay on as a career public servant at generous wages. Any punk with a gun can be a cop but it takes a hero to be a Hellfighter