‘Fight fire with fire’: M’sia fire department posts AI-generated poster showing firefighter with rifle

Malaysian fire department mocked for AI-generated image where firefighter holds gun, takes post down

When thinking of a firefighter, one would probably imagine them holding a hose. Instead, the Kedah Fire and Rescue Department opted for an atypical choice of equipment.

In an AI-generated poster, they depicted their firefighter armed with an assault rifle.

The image, originally shared as a Facebook post, has since been taken down.

Firefighter holds strange rifle in Malaysian AI-generated image

On Monday (2 March), a netizen reposted the photo to the Malaysia subreddit, with the firefighters in full gear and one holding an “assault rifle”.

The Kedah Fire and Rescue Department had uploaded the AI-generated poster to Facebook, advertising their almost 937 members as well as the areas in Kedah they covered.

The image’s background featured heavy fire and smoke, befitting the theme, as well as firefighters doing rescue work.

However, one of the firefighters in the image had been generated with a gun in his hands instead.

It did not appear to be an actual functioning gun either, featuring a strangely short buttstock and a comically oversized scope.

Netizens joke about ‘really pointy water’ from firefighter’s rifle

Malaysian Redditors mocked the image, with the backlash seemingly causing the Facebook post to be deleted.

“Fight fire with fire,” one joked.

Another witty netizen suggested that it would shoot “really pointy water projectiles”.

Several commenters also noted one firefighter holding the Jaws of Life hydraulic tool like a gun, although they acknowledged that it was at least an actual piece of firefighting equipment.

On a more serious note, a netizen claimed that many agencies in Malaysia use AI-generated images nowadays.

They alleged that “younger people use AI because they’re lazy”, and the older people commissioning the posters don’t care about the AI generation.

The Kedah Fire and Rescue Department has a history of frequently using AI-generated images, such as one from 21 Feb where the water jet from a hose decided to disobey the laws of physics.

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Featured image adapted from Source: Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Malaysia Negeri Kedah on Facebook via Reddit, and Facebook.