Arizona Man Pleads Guilty to Starting 2019 Cottonwood Creek Fire in Grand Canyon National Park

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Fire problems to Cottonwood Creek Fireplace in 2019

NPS Image/Jacob Tung

Information Launch Day: September 10, 2020

Make contact with: Joelle Baird, 928-638-7609

GRAND CANYON, Ariz. –Pursuing an investigation by Specific Agents of the Nationwide Park Support (NPS) Investigative Providers Department and U.S. Park Rangers, Thomas Grabarek, 71, of Flagstaff, Ariz., pled guilty on September 8, 2020 to misdemeanor violations for starting off a wildland fireplace in Grand Canyon Nationwide Park. The Cottonwood Creek Fire ignited close to 64 acres in the Internal Canyon alongside the Tonto Path around Horseshoe Mesa.  

On October 27, 2019, whilst backpacking around Cottonwood Creek, Grabarek commenced a hearth by lights bathroom paper in an attempt to incinerate it. Large winds that working day permitted the fire to rapidly distribute uphill, necessitating immediate reaction by NPS wildland hearth personnel.

In his plea settlement, Grabarek agreed to shell out restitution totaling $53,520.03. These cash will assist park supervisors rehabilitate the burned place around the course of the future four yrs. Grabarek also agreed to carry out community assistance by making a community provider announcement and helping NPS personnel in the generation of educational signals to be posted in the Backcountry Info Middle relating to the hazards of burning bathroom paper in the backcountry.

In accordance to the U.S. Forest Service, nearly 85 percent of all wildland fires in the United States are brought on by people. If you are hiking and tenting under the rim of Grand Canyon, gas stoves could be made use of, but campfires and other open fires are in no way authorized.  

For a lot more details on fire rules at Grand Canyon Countrywide Park, pay a visit to: https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/management/firemanagement.htm

To report a suspicious or prison exercise in a national park website, contact the NPS Suggestion Line at 1-888-653-0009.

 

-NPS-

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