GoPro firefighting video predates 2025 Los Angeles fires | Fact check
The claim: GoPro firefighter footage is from January 2025 Los Angeles fires
A Jan. 10 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows point-of-view footage of a firefighter spraying water on a blaze inside of a building.
"GoPro footage from Fire Fighter," reads text positioned under the footage. "Pray for L.A."
The post's caption also mentions a "man fighting against Los Angeles Fire" and includes Los Angeles and wildfire-themed hashtags.
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Our rating: False
The footage in the post is not associated with the Los Angeles wildfires that began in January 2025. It was posted online before the fires started.
Footage predates Los Angeles fires
Multiple Los Angeles area wildfires broke out in early January and continue to burn. Collectively, these fires have killed at least 25 and burned thousands of structures.
But the footage in the post is not associated with these fires. The video was posted on camera company GoPro's YouTube page on Nov. 8, 2024. The caption says it shows a burning house in Santiago, Chile.
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Paste BN reached out to the Instagram user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Reuters also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources
- World Resources Institute, Jan. 14, 4 Graphics Explain Los Angeles’ Rare and Devastating January Fires
- GoPro (YouTube), Nov. 8, 2024, Firefighter's Raw POV
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