Working on California's incarcerated fire crews: "It is kind of like you’re a slave"

As of Wednesday morning , 1,116 incarcerated people were embedded with the state’s other firefighters to help slow the spread of the infernos that have killed at least 25 people and devastated neighborhoods across LA county .

Incarcerated firefighters make between $5.80 and $10.24 daily , and an additional $1 hourly while responding to emergencies.

California has long relied on incarcerated people to fight fires, with imprisoned crews at times accounting for as much as 30 percent of the wildfire force in the state.

Fire camp participants have long struggled to continue those careers on the outside.

California ’s Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law to give incarcerated firefighters more opportunities upon release.