Firefighter’s Ford Ranger Stolen By Wildfire Victim

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Bitter irony is the only thing we can think of about this story of a firefighter whose Ford Ranger was likely stolen by someone living in a town he was working to save from a wildfire. They say no good deed goes unpunished and unfortunately in this situation that seems to bear true.

Here is evidence drivers aren’t paying attention on the road.

This story comes out of California as countless individuals venture into the wilderness to battle several wildfires raging in the state. One of those people, Judah Collins, parked his truck at a fire facility in Redding, then took a bus to fight the Park Fire, never thinking he would fall victim to theft.

After spending days and nights trying to help control the fourth-largest wildfire in California’s history, Collins was sent back thanks to a foot injury. Bummed he had to abandon his crew and was no longer in the fight, the man was shocked when he got back to Redding only to find his pickup had disappeared.

We can’t imagine what a gut punch that was. He told CBS News Sacramento the Ranger was something he saved for years to buy. Undoubtedly, the thief didn’t care about that or the fact the truck was parked at the facility being used by firefighters saving the city from a fiery fate.

Car thieves are inherently selfish in their actions. They might lie to themselves and say there are no real victims since vehicles are insured, but the harsh reality is most people don’t have full replacement coverage, especially on an old Ford Ranger.

The only form of transportation Collions has left is a bicycle and he’s nursing a foot injury, so that’s not really an option. It’s a bitterly ironic twist that the man helped save a community from a wildfire only for someone in that community to steal his greatest asset.

Image via CBS News Sacramento/YouTube

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