‘Just so surreal’: Winnipeg firefighter joins wildfire battle while vacationing in L.A.

The Eaton Fire north of Pasadena is pictured on Jan. 7, 2025. (Romeo Petit)

A Winnipeg firefighter with over two decades of experience found himself joining the fight against one of the most destructive fires in Los Angeles history.

Lieutenant Romeo Petit with the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service was on vacation with his girlfriend near Pasadena earlier this week when wildfires began to spread through coastal California.

“We knew there were forest fires happening around the area. However, we didn’t think they were going to reach where we were staying,” he told CTV Morning Live Winnipeg in an interview Friday.

However, Petit learned Tuesday night a wildfire was engulfing a mountain near a friend’s home where he was staying with his girlfriend.

They scrambled to pack their things and left, driving through a main road on the mountain that serves as the primary artery in and out of the community.

“As we were going up the hill, we see this fire on the mountain. The winds were crazy—80 mph winds. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was just so surreal,” he said.

“I’m thinking these people are going to lose their homes.”

After they dropped off their things in a safe area, Petit, his girlfriend, and a friend decided to go back to help others evacuate.

They returned to a dramatically different scene.

“All we could see was just a glow of orange around us.”

Although he is not trained in forest fires, Petit knew to pre-emptively wet the ground so embers would have a harder time starting.

Masked up and armed with found garden hoses, they went from yard to yard, dousing the grounds and homes to try to give the community a fighting chance at survival.

At one point, Petit got on the roof of a home that was already partially on fire, trying to save what remained.

“I just started pouring water. I was ripping off shingles, just to try to stop the spread because a lot of these people don’t have insurance here in California, fire insurance, so you try to save whatever you can because if they don’t have a house, they have nothing left.”

The group was able to save that home and others. During their hours-long battle, Petit served as a makeshift fire commander while his girlfriend and friend, both with no firefighting experience, learned on the job to be his fire deputies.

He credits instincts honed by a decades-long career in firefighting for his efforts that day.

Still, the experience was a sad and terrifying one for the veteran firefighter.

“It’s humbling. I’m sad for everyone out here who lost their homes and their lives.”

- With files from CTV’s Rachel Lagacé