As the Eaton and Palisades fires continue to blaze through Los Angeles, automakers have come together to help support rescue, rebuilding, and other relief efforts within impacted communities. Brands like Honda and Hyundai have chosen to donate money, while Tesla has sent Cybertrucks equipped with Starlink internet service receivers to the area to help shore up ineffective cell networks. Land Rover is also helping by sending first responders a car. But that car just happens to be a Defender rally car.
Specifically, it is a Defender that was run in the Rebelle Rally back in October. Back then, the truck ran seven days through a 1200-mile off-road route in California and Nevada as part of the all-women navigational rally raid event. Now, the car is being used to support and supply fire response efforts throughout the greater Los Angeles area.
The Defender is currently being used by the L.A. Sheriff's Department in relief efforts, a Land Rover spokesperson told Road & Track. Mike Leum, the LASD rescuer using the Defender, previously flew in to help with hurricane relief in North Carolina last year. He spent some time with the Land Rover Experience School there, learning how to best use the brand's fully prepped off-roaders to help with disaster support. Now, he is using a Defender to provide the same sort of help in his home county.
Another Defender, a 130, has also been sent to Mercy Chefs at the LA Coliseum command center. That group is using their SUV to deliver food to the needy around Pasadena from that central location.
The rally-ready Defender is already being put to work in its latest job. As Leum shared on social media, the SUV was used earlier in the week to help access homes that had been cut off from the rest of the region when a bridge melted in the fires. Not only did the Defender's off-roading abilities allow first responders to reach those homes more quickly, its front-mounted winch helped clear debris while the path was cleared.
A Land Rover's strengths can be useful for less extreme jobs, too. The truck's massive cargo area is also useful for holding snacks, which were brought to officers and National Guard members responsible for posting up at street closures.
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