No, California Didn't Turn Away Fire Trucks From Oregon Over Smog Certification

Dozens of fire-fighting vehicles from Oregon were turned away from helping to fight L.A. wildfires in January 2025 because they didn't meet California’s smog-certification standards.

Rating: False


Context

According to Oregon and California’s fire departments, trucks were stopped in Davis, California, just outside Sacramento, for maintenance and safety checks, and those trucks continued onward. Photos and news coverage confirm that trucks from other states were assisting firefighters in Los Angeles.

As wildfires raged in Los Angeles, California, in January 2025, nearby states like Oregon sent firefighters and trucks to aid in the emergency. Rumors soon spread that at least 60 trucks from Oregon were being turned away near the state Capitol of Sacramento, Calif., because they didn't meet California's smog-certification requirements.

Numerous Snopes readers asked us whether such claims were true and whether California was turning away fire trucks from other states.

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/oregon-fire-trucks-turned-away-from-la-smog/