Washington inmates thanked for help on wildfires

Published 12:58 pm Friday, October 10, 2014

LITTLEROCK — All 29 inmate firefighting crews in Washington were deployed last summer on state wildfires.

They worked alongside professional firefighters for 50-cents an hour.

KPLU reports inmate firefighters were honored by state Lands Commissioner Peter Goldmark at a ceremony Thursday at the Cedar Creek Corrections Center near Olympia.

Goldmark says the inmates were indispensable this year when other firefighting crews were spread thin.