Right - even if it is not as dramatic as imprisonment in the camps in Hamgyeongbukdo, it could mean demotion and years of sustained investigation and perhaps social ostracism.
But I think one of the other motives here is that these guys are probably getting some wild hazard pay for going to the conflict zone, and their relative wealth within North Korea as elite soldier careerists is probably quite decent as is.
It is also the case that a lot of underbrush was not routinely removed… This is somewhat understandable when we are talking about forest fires in more remote parts of California.
The big issue is that underbrush in various parts near Los Angeles suburbs and throughout the area had not been dealt with.
The Getty Mansion and museum grounds were fully within the line of the fire that was coming, but they privately maintained their own grounds and insured that the underbrush that works as kindling for these fires was handled, and even have their own means of fighting fires that would start there… And they were completely fine even though many places all around them burnt down.