close
close

Northern California firefighter makes headlines with racist tirade after accident

A video of a Northern California firefighter making racially insensitive remarks during an argument with a man following an accident went viral over the weekend. The video, shot from inside a car, shows a man approaching the window to discuss an incident on the road. Vath Touch was the driver who recorded the video. He told KCRA 3 the accident happened Friday morning on Highway 99 between Armstrong Road and Harney Lane in Lodi. At the beginning of the video, Touch and the man argue about who was responsible for the accident. Touch said, “The cops are coming,” to which the other man responded with several racially charged and derogatory comments. (Trigger warning: A censored version of the altercation can be found in the video player above this story.) Later in the video, Touch called the man a racist and said, “I'm not a (expletive) racist, I'm a (expletive) firefighter,” while pointing to an apparent fire department seal on his shirt. KCRA 3 confirmed Sunday night that the man is a firefighter with the Alameda County Fire Department. Alameda Fire has not released the man's identity or employment status. “It came to our attention that language was used during this interaction that is inconsistent with the values ​​and standards we hold as an organization,” the fire department said of the viral video. Alameda County Fire Chief William McDonald released a statement in response to the video. “Our department is committed to gathering all of the facts and we are handling this situation in a manner that reflects our commitment to integrity, professionalism and community trust. Our goal is to ensure we continue to serve our community with the highest level of respect, both on and off duty,” McDonald said. Touch posted the full video to his TikTok account on Friday.

Over the weekend, a video went viral showing a Northern California firefighter making racially insensitive remarks during an argument with a man following a car accident.

The video, shot from inside a car, shows a man approaching the window to discuss an incident on the street.

Vath Touch was the driver who recorded the video. He told KCRA 3 the accident happened Friday morning on Highway 99 between Armstrong Road and Harney Lane in Lodi.

At the beginning of the video, Touch and the man argue about who was responsible for the accident.

Touch said, “The police are coming,” to which the other man responded with several racially charged and derogatory comments.

(Trigger warning: A censored version of the argument can be found in the video player above this story.)

Later in the video, Touch called the man a racist and said, “I'm not a (expletive) racist, I'm a (expletive) firefighter,” pointing to an obvious fire department seal on his shirt.

KCRA 3 confirmed Sunday evening that the man was a firefighter with the Alameda County Fire Department.

Alameda Fire has not released the man's identity or employment status.

“It came to our attention that language was used during this interaction that was inconsistent with the values ​​and standards we hold as an organization,” the department said of the viral video.

Alameda County Fire Chief William McDonald released a statement in response to the video.

“Our department is committed to gathering all the facts, and we are handling this situation in a manner that reflects our commitment to integrity, professionalism and community trust. Our goal is to ensure we continue to serve our community with the highest level of respect, both on and off duty,” McDonald said.

Touch posted the full video on his TikTok account on Friday.

You may also like...