When flames threatened his childhood neighborhood, a California fire chief didn’t just rely on hoses and hydrants — he turned to a fridge stocked with dairy and brews.
What started as a family check-in became a lesson in quick thinking, proving that sometimes heroes come in liquid form… even if they’re better suited for cereal or a backyard barbecue. Orange County Fire Authority Chief Brian Fennessy initially assured his brother and friends in Altadena they’d be “fine” as the Eaton Fire erupted. But hours later, the inferno transformed his old stomping grounds into “a total nightmare.”
A box of milk that helped douse a fire on a gas meter. Photo from YouTube
After his brother’s phone went silent, Fennessy raced to the scene, only to find the family safely evacuated. Relief turned to urgency, however, when he spotted a neighbor’s gas meter melting under the heat. With no water available, the veteran firefighter—armed with nearly five decades of experience — improvised.
“I thought I’ll check the refrigerator and all that was in there was some milk and a couple beers,” Fennessy said. Forced to choose between dairy and IPA, he grabbed both. “Went back out and kind of ran back there and cooled it off and pulled it back a little bit,” he added, downplaying the surreal scene. Though the meter “wasn’t completely out,” and he “wasn’t sure if it was going to rekindle,” the makeshift effort worked — saving his brother’s home and a neighboring house from joining the charred landscape.
Chief Fennessy looks over the house. Photo from YouTube
The two homes stood alone on a block reduced to ashes, a testament to Fennessy’s split-second creativity. “In this case, yeah, you know, little bit of milk and a couple beers really saved the day,” he said with a chuckle. But his tone turned sober as he reflected on the broader crisis. With crews stretched thin, Fennessy stressed that waiting for help wasn’t an option. “We tell everybody call 911 and we’ll be there,” he said.
This was a situation (where) you call 911, it’s unlikely we were gonna be there.”
The close call underscores a grim shift in California’s firefighting challenges. Fennessy warned that urban infernos hopping from house to house could become “our new reality,” fueled by relentless winds and drier conditions. “This house-to-house, these urban conflagrations, we’re going start seeing them more and more,” he said.
While the milk-and-beer rescue adds a quirky twist to the devastation, it also highlights a stark truth: as wildfires grow fiercer, even veterans must adapt. For Fennessy, that meant trading hoses for grocery items in a race against time. And though he’d never recommend raiding fridges over fire trucks, his unorthodox strategy offers a sliver of hope. “(But) in this case, yeah, you know, little bit of milk and a couple beers really saved the day,” he said.
Sources: NY Post | CBS Austin
