MALIBU, Calif. - Inside a garage in Agoura Hills, Bobby Milstein holds a blowtorch to a stick of wood. The blue and red flame barely chars the tip, which has been soaked in a water soluble, fire resistant gel. The gel, which can be used to coat the outside of a home during a fire, is a signature product at Socal Fire Supply. 

If you’re a private citizen looking for professional wildfire gear, Milstein is your guy. 

“If you decide to live in a place that’s potentially a fire hazard, I honestly think it’s the home owners responsibility to do things to mitigate fires, first and foremost,” Milstein said. 

But some homeowners in Malibu are taking home defense a step further, and looking out for more than just their own. Milstein is currently refurbishing a rusty old engine purchased by a newly-formed volunteer fire brigade in Point Dume. The community raised money to purchase the engine and a group of neighbors will soon begin training on how to use it in the event of another wildfire in Malibu. 

“I mean, the history of firefighting in America was volunteer based and done by private citizens,” Milstein said. 

The local movement was inspired by men like Mikke Pierson, a council member who ignored Woolsey Fire evacuation orders. He and his neighbors used their own hoses and equipment when no firefighters responded to Malibu West. 

Today, Pierson is back at his desk job. His volunteer fire brigade has about twenty members and they are already training for the next fire. Copycat communities have him excited and concerned. 

“My worry is that some people will stay just because they know some of us who stayed saved houses,” Pierson said. “Besides the equipment you need to be mentally prepared.  When these fires come they are very scary.”

He also worries some of this enthusiasm will have burned off by the next disaster. Point Dume resident Jane Albrecht worries about that too. When she walks down her street, she sees neighbors who have lost everything and thinks there must be a better way to respond to fires. 

“I guess my way of dealing with things is finding out what happened, getting to the truth of it and then trying to fix it,” Albrecht said. 

The former international trade lawyer is lobbying for a state fire reserve, similar to the National Guard. Community member could become certified firefighters who train once a month but are ready to deploy at a moment’s notice. 

“You’re further empowering these people to do a better job but you’re also taking a situation that the fire department currently views as a problem, that people would stay and defend their homes, and you’re turning it into a solution,” Albrecht said. 

But to Milstein, the owner of Socal Fire Supply, government solutions don’t come quickly enough. 

“Any natural disaster…you really just have your neighbors to help you,” Milstein said. 

Whether or not the brigades ever become official, it’s clear that fire drills are no longer just for school children.