Comedian Bill Burr unleashed his ire on unqualified critics of Los Angeles’ response to devastating fires when he appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Tuesday night.
The 56-year-old stand-up star immediately said he thought “everyone did a great job” fighting the fires, which included major blazes in L.A.’s Pacific Palisades neighborhood and Altadena, which borders Pasadena.
But he didn’t think “the Internet” and its commentators were doing anything to help with the firefighting efforts.
Burr – who was also furious at insurance companies for profiting from people’s misery – called out “all these ‘fire experts'” and mocked their attempts to outsmart local officials.
“Why didn’t you just fly a helicopter into the ocean? And then just, f***in’…” he said mockingly before walking away.
“I don’t know because there was a 100-knot wind?” Burr continued as he dismissed complaints that helicopters were not used enough in the early hours of the firefight. ‘Do you want to do that at night? You damn fool.”
Comedian Bill Burr, 56, unleashed his wrath on unqualified critics of Los Angeles’ response to devastating fires when he appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Tuesday night.
At least 25 people have died as a result of the LA fires, and more than 180,000 people have been forced to evacuate. LA Mayor Karen Bass and California Governor Gavin Newsom have been heavily criticized for their response to the fires; on January 8, a house burns down in Altadena
Winds on the first night of the fires gusted as much as 80 to 100 miles per hour, which would have been dangerous if low-altitude aircraft or helicopters tried to extinguish the fires.
Burr also appeared to allude to some half-baked claims from social media users that firefighters should have used Pacific water to battle the flames, after failing pump systems and poor water pressure from immediate overuse hampered efforts to drown out the fires.
Although the water supply initially had problems, there was no shortage of water, and dropping huge amounts of seawater on the fires would have destroyed the land by salting it and possibly even contaminating the groundwater.
Burr continued to mock the Monday morning quarterbacks by reciting one of their oft-used quotes: “This was definitely poorly managed.”
“That’s a big word we’re hearing right now,” Kimmel said of the “mismanagement” claims.
‘Poorly managed?!’ Burr continued. “Like some fucking idiot on the internet knows how to control the worst fire in LA while he’s sitting there in his underwear.”
Burr said during the segment that his family had to evacuate their home, but luckily the house survived thanks to changing wind patterns.
Kimmel noted that the King Of Staten Island actor knows quite a bit about helicopters compared to the online critics, as he owns his own helicopter.
Burr shot down claims that planes should have been used more to fight the fires on the first night. He said it was a “100 knot wind” that prevented safe flight. ‘Do you want to do that at night? You damn fool’
Burr continued to mock the critics by reciting one of their oft-used sayings: “This was definitely poorly managed.”
“Like some fucking idiot on the internet knows how to control the worst fire in LA while he’s sitting there in his underwear,” he joked
But Burr joked that he couldn’t just fly him away from the oncoming fire because he learned that helicopters are expensive, so he only bought a two-seater and didn’t want to get into a “Sophie’s Choice” situation when it came to choosing whether his wife Nia or one of their two children would escape with him.
Instead, they all got into the SUV “just like everyone else.”
Burr returned to compliment people working to quickly restore service after damage caused by the fires.
“These guys were out there clearing the trees and reconnecting the wires and everything,” he said. “It looked like something terrible that could have happened, and it did.”
The comedian also called out social media users who shared conspiracy theories about homeless people or vagrants causing the fires.
‘They light fires every day! They live outside,” he joked about the homeless, using that as evidence that they probably didn’t suddenly start the devastating fires.
He also dismissed the “theory that a homeless man went from Altadena all the way to the Pacific Palisades without a car – did he have a hang glider?”
The two parts of LA County are about 35 miles apart and it would take one to two hours to get from one place to the other by car, depending on the time of day.
Burr revealed that he knows quite a bit about airplanes because he owns his own helicopter. But he didn’t use it to escape because he got a ‘two-seater’ to save money and he didn’t want ‘Sophie’s Choice’ when choosing who would go with him
Burr denounced conspiracy theories that claimed a homeless person or arsonists set the fires, the largest of which are about 35 miles (56 kilometers) apart, or one to two hours by car, depending on the time of day; fire destruction pictured from Tuesday in LA
So far, there is no evidence that the LA fires are the result of arson.
Instead, energy company Edison International is under investigation over claims that a downed conductor may have started one of the fires.
Multiple lawsuits have also been filed against Southern California Edison over claims that the power company caused the Eaton fire, which devastated Altadena and Pasadena.
Burr subsequently criticized CNN and other news organizations for focusing on rumors and conspiracy theories about arsonists while failing to provide coverage for insurance companies, some of which canceled policies in the affected areas late last year, leaving residents whose homes burned down without a safety net.
“Free Luigi!” he shouted, referring to Luigi Mangione – who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson – to laughter and applause from the audience.
Elsewhere in the segment, Bill revealed that he was surprisingly calm when his family had to evacuate their home, as he only becomes strangely calm during crises and only gets comically upset over minor inconveniences.
So far, at least 25 people have died as a result of the LA fires, and more than 180,000 people have been forced to evacuate.