Ozzy Osbourne: My son Jack is 'nuts' to tackle California fires

The wildfires raging across California have devastated more than 7,000 homes, destroying towns and leaving over 50 people dead and scores missing.

Among the 9,000 firefighters who have tackled the blaze this week was Jack Osbourne, son of rock god Ozzy, who was spotted working as a Malibu Police Department reserve officer to assist with the relief effort.

The Big Issue spoke to Ozzy Osbourne this week – check back later this month for the bat-biting interview – and he paid tribute to his son for his emergency efforts as well as revealing it is not the first time that Jack has rushed into the line of danger.

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“Jack’s fucking intrepid, he’s fucking nuts,” The Prince of Darkness told The Big Issue. “I take my heart out to him because he just says, “Fuck this, I’m going to help the fire people”. He wanted to go down in 9/11 to help out too and we had to say no. He’s fucking insane, even more than me!

“It’s like someone has dropped a fucking atom bomb around here, everything is on fire. There are people dead and missing. But when Jack wants to do something there’s no stopping him, he just says “I’ll be alright, it’s fine” and me and Sharon are worried about him. And you’ve got to remember that he’s got MS too. But he’s a big boy on his own. What can I do?”

As for Ozzy, he has so far escaped the worst of the fires but expressed his sympathies for the thousands of people who have been evacuated or lost their homes.

Gerard Butler, Miley Cyrus and Neil Young are among the megastars who have seen the wildfires damage their homes or raze them to the ground, and while some celebrities have opted to help in the rescue and cleanup operations, others have highlighted how the rich can buy their way out of the devastating effects of climate change.

“We’re still upstanding but everyone else seems to be burnt out. It’s been raging fires here but I’m in a different part of town. It’s been really bad, man,” said Ozzy.

1/2 Driving around Point Dume on Saturday. My heart aches for all those who lost their homes and their lives in California. I was one of the lucky ones, my home was only partially destroyed. A lot of people lost everything and will have to rebuild from scratch. (tweet continued) pic.twitter.com/cS4UTlRR00

— Gerard Butler (@GerardButler) November 12, 2018

“I used to live in a place called Hidden Hills and that’s been evacuated, whether my old house has been burnt or not, I don’t know.

“If you lose a house then it’s not just about the house, it’s about all the memories.”