“Every Place Was Burning”: Arnold Schwarzenegger Recalls Horrors of Waking up to 2000 Fires in California As Former Governor

Arnold Schwarzenegger released his new book Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life on October 10. Three days later, the 76-year-old sat with his True Lies co-star Jamie Lee Curtis to talk about his book at Live Talks Los Angeles. While speaking on the book and what he learned from serving as Governor of California, Arnie recalled a moment of crisis during his term.

The bodybuilding legend recalled how he once woke up to the news of over 2000 wildfires raging across the state. Schwarzenegger elaborated on how rapidly the situation worsened throughout the night in the YouTube video Live Talks uploaded earlier. The former Mr. Olympia also explained what he had to do to help the people of the state.

Things got out of hand in a matter of hours

During his conversation with Jamie Lee Curtis, the Everything Everywhere All at Once actor asked Arnie about his impact as governor. The former governor recalled an incident to explain his answer. Arnie recalled that one October night during his term as Governor of California, Schwarzenegger awoke to a call at “12:00 at midnight.” Arnie learned that around 570 fires raged across California at the time.

While efforts were underway to control the fire, Schwarzenegger couldn’t sleep. The former chairman of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition wondered how the state would deal with so many raging fires. However, when he woke up a few hours later at 5:00 am, Arnie was in for a shock. “I find out there is 2,013 fires,” across the state, said Arnold Schwarzenegger.

“It was like it was every place was burning,” he told Curtis. However, Schwarzenegger sprung into action authorizing more equipment and emergency services for the firefighters on the ground. The then-governor also oversaw the evacuation of 20,000 people in the path of the fires. Arnioe also ensured that the 100,000 people who took shelter in the Qualcomm stadium had food, water, and other necessities to hold out. The 76-year-old said as governor, he had to think about the “40 million people” of California and not just himself.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger strove to serve selflessly

The Austrian Oak became the 38th Governor of California in the 2003 recall election. After winning the election and being sworn in as Governor, Schwarzenegger became eligible for the $187,000 governor’s salary. However, the Hollywood action star rejected the salary. He even called it “petty cash.” However, Schwarzenegger’s intentions were noble.

The bodybuilding icon-turned-Hollywood action hero had earned considerable wealth through films and investments. Hence, the multimillionaire wasn’t strapped for cash when he became governor. So, instead of accepting his salary, Arnie refused it to serve the people of California selflessly.

Arnold Schwarzenegger faced many challenges during his time as governor. Today, all his policies aren’t universally praised either. However, Schwarzenegger always aimed to serve the people no matter the situation.

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