Man Arrested for Throwing Energy Drink Can at CAL FIRE Rig, Shattering Windshield

The engine in Butte County, hit by an unopened 20-ounce can of Red Bull, was out of service for weeks until it was repaired.

By Michael Weber

Source Chico Enterprise-Record, Calif. (TNS)

Oct. 29, 2025

Officers arrested a Palermo man Oct. 20 on suspicion of throwing a 20-ounce unopened energy drink at a fire engine in June, shattering its windshield, according to a news release Monday from Cal Fire-Butte County.

The release said Cal Fire-Butte County Engine 72 was responding to a vegetation fire June 29 and became inoperable after it was struck by an object thrown from the roadside on Upper Palermo Road. Investigators recovered a can of Red Bull, and found sticky substances “consistent with the beverage,” according to the release.

After a joint investigation by Cal Fire-Butte County, Butte County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol, law enforcement officers say they identified William Miller Jr., 31, as the man who threw the drink, and arrested him.

After the incident, the fire engine remained out of service for “several weeks” and “required repairs costing several thousand dollars,” the release said.