STOCKTON, Calif. — A viral video on social media says a interaction caught on camera involving a firefighter happened in Stockton, but Stockton firefighters say they've never seen that person before.
The video shared by tizzyent on TikTok shows a firefighter making racist comments toward another person in a car. In the video, the man says he's a firefighter and appears to have a firefighter emblem on his shirt, at least indicating Station 8. There is no Station 8 in Stockton.
While it's unclear exactly where the interaction happened from the video, tizzyent says it happened in Stockton. The Stockton firefighters union says the man isn't one of theirs.
"We were shared this video a couple hours ago and did some research to confirm that wasn't one of our firefighters and wanted to make sure it wasn't a retiree or auxiliary or anything. We confirmed it's not one of our firefighters," said Mario Gardea, president of the Stockton Professional Firefighters.
They're trying to figure out who the mystery firefighter is, too.
Gardea says some of their members are getting harassed as people online try to mistakenly identify the man as one of them.
"There was a couple names thrown out on TikTok that name a couple firefighters, current firefighters right now, and it's absolutely not them," Gardea said.
He says they don't condone any of what the man said, emphasizing again the man was not a firefighter with Stockton Fire Department.
The Alameda County Fire Department ultimately confirmed the man was one of their firefighters Sunday evening.
Alameda County Fire Chief William McDonald released a statement on social media saying:
“Our department is committed to gathering all the facts, and we are addressing this situation in a manner that reflects our dedication to integrity, professionalism, and community trust. We aim to ensure that we continue to serve our community with the highest level of respect, both on and off duty."
The full video from tizzyent can be viewed HERE.
