Hunter Started Yosemite Fire: Feds

Campfire apparently got away from him
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 5, 2013 12:31 PM CDT
Hunter Started Yosemite Fire: Feds
In this photo provided by the U.S. Forest Service, a fire crew member rests near a controlled burn while fighting the Rim Fire near Yosemite.   (AP Photo/U.S. Forest Service, Mike McMillan)

Looks like it wasn't an illegal pot farm after all: The gigantic wildfire in and around Yosemite National Park began when a hunter allowed an illegal fire to escape, the US Forest Service said today. No arrests have been made, and the hunter's name was being withheld pending further investigation. The Rim fire began on Aug. 17 in an isolated area of the Stanislaus National Forest and has burned nearly 371 square miles—one of the largest wildfires in California history. The blaze is now 80% contained. (More Yosemite National Park stories.)

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