Hildale police investigate fire, shooting report
 Three juveniles may have fired shots at air tankers, police say
 
By Patrice St. Germain
patrices@thespectrum.com
 
HILDALE - Hildale police and the Bureau of Land Management are investigating an incident concerning three juveniles who may have fired shots at air tankers fighting a fire in the area on Thursday night.

Hildale Mayor David Zitting said police told him three juveniles were seen in a yard in Hildale with a rifle and that they followed up on a report that the juveniles may have been shooting at the planes.

Zitting said the juveniles denied it, but their rifle was confiscated anyway.

"The police are very concerned about these juveniles having a rifle and the incident is still under investigation," Zitting said Friday evening. "Any information our department gathers will be shared with the Bureau of Land Management."

David Boyd, spokesman for the BLM Arizona Strip office, said he was concerned that the juveniles were trying to hit the airplanes called in to fight the brush fire burning in the Maxwell Canyon area.

"The pilots have enough to worry about with hazardous flying conditions - flying in low over the fires," Boyd said. "We will work with Hildale on the investigation and I hope that is not what occurred. We will have to wait and see what the investigation shows."

Zitting said the fire began when a male juvenile from Hildale ignited a firework. The firework went over a hill and into a grassy area where it started the fire. Zitting said the boy was unable to put the fire out, went home and told his father, who contacted fire officials.

Boyd said the BLM responded with three single-engine air tankers, a helicopter and other air-attack support. The fire burned about 28 acres before it was brought under control by BLM and Colorado City/Hildale firefighters. Boyd said because of the extremely dry conditions, fires are aggressively attacked.

"It's easier to get a handle on fires when they are small," Boyd said. "Our concern, with how dry everything is, is that a fire can easily get out of control."

Boyd said fireworks are always illegal on public lands and fires started either by accident or through carelessness could result in the person causing the fire to be responsible for suppression costs.

Boyd did not have a dollar figure on the cost to fight the fire Thursday evening, but said bringing in air support is expensive.
 
TheSpectrum.com
Originally published July 16, 2005
 
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