Amid L.A. fires, California officials deny false claims Oregon fire trucks turned away due to emissions regulations

California officials have denied claims spread by right-wing influencers on social media that Oregon fire trucks were turned away because of emissions regulations. In fact, they say, the trucks were briefly stopped for routine safety checks before they traveled to the site of the Los Angeles fires.

Cal Fire debunked that claim that has widely circulated on social media, stating that “no vehicles from out of state have been turned around or refused service.” The agency said any vehicles or resources that come in from out of state are subject to inspections to make sure they’re ready for use, but this is not emissions testing.

The office of the Oregon State Fire Marshal also addressed the rumors, saying all Oregon teams deployed to Southern California began working their shifts last Friday as planned. The OSFM said the safety checks helped ensure that their equipment, which “does not regularly travel hundreds of miles at a time,” was safe for their firefighters to use.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office also refuted the claims, noting that vehicles undergo a “15 minute safety and equipment inspection” to ensure there are no issues. He added that by the time the false claims started spreading, “the Oregon firefighting teams were already in the Los Angeles area battling the blazes.”

Firefighting teams from eight states, Canada and Mexico have joined California crews and National Guard troops in the fight against the deadly fires, which have scorched more than 60 square miles over the last week.

State officials and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have been actively trying to counter false rumors and misinformation about the fires.