February 11, 2009 5:49 PM
- Text
Hunt Stepped Up For SoCal Wildfire Culprit
(CBS/AP)
As flames roared through the canyons of Southern California, authorities increased the reward to $500,000 Friday for the arrest of the arsonist responsible for the deaths of four firefighters in the nation's worst such tragedy in five years.
A fifth firefighter lay in grave condition with burns over 90 percent of his body.
Firefighters labored through thick smoke as curtains of wind-whipped orange flame pushed through uninhabited brushland about 90 miles east of Los Angeles. The blaze that broke out Thursday destroyed about 10 structures, including homes, forced 700 people to flee, and flushed coyotes and other wildlife into the open.
Investigators have not said how they know the nearly 40-square-mile blaze was arson, how it was set, or why. But they said those responsible could face murder charges.
Two young men were seen leaving the area where the fire broke out about 1 a.m. Thursday.
Sources close to investigation tell CBS News that the fire was probably started by something as something as simple as a lighter, which would have been used to ignite dry grasses along the road. They say the arsonist picked the spot because it is like a wind tunnel — a nearly constant wind powers Palm Springs generators just down the road.
There have been more than 25 arson fires in the Palm Springs area in the last few weeks. But solving the case won't be easy, reports CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker. Almost three years ago to the day, another arson fire, the so-called "Old Fire," killed four people and burned thousands of houses. That arsonist has never been caught. Even if investigators do find a suspect, proving wildfire arson in incredibly difficult. They have to rule out any possibility of a natural cause or even something as simple as a spark from a car.
More than 1,700 firefighters worked to corral the advancing flames. Winds gusted to 45 mph but kept the flames moving through undeveloped land, away from homes in Riverside County. Mop-up work was under way back in the mountain communities where the flames swept through the previous day. Hundreds of people were allowed to leave an RV park where they had taken refuge, and many other families were able to return to their homes. About 400 people remained evacuated Friday evening.
The U.S. Forest Service firefighters were killed on Thursday when the wind blew a wall of flames down on them in the hills near Palm Springs as they tried to protect a home.
It was the worst disaster involving firefighters battling a wildfire since 2001, when four firefighters were trapped by flames and killed in Washington state.
James Pence, 63, said that shortly after the fire started in the town of Cabazon, he saw two unfamiliar young men leaving the area, which he said is close to a teenage hangout known as Raccoon Rock. "These kids didn't belong here. They were strange people," Pence said.
Tim Bowers, 49, said he was awakened by his dog, looked outside his trailer and saw flames on a hillside about 100 yards away. He said two unfamiliar young men walked away from the fire.
"I looked at them. They looked at me. Then they turned their heads and kept walking," Bowers said. The two were gone by the time he alerted an arriving firefighter, he said.
Sheriff's detectives interviewed the Cabazon trailer park neighbors and fielded about 100 tips.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger added $100,000 in state money to a reward already posted by Riverside County for information leading to the arsonist. San Bernardino County and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, which has a casino, added another $200,000. A Rancho Mirage resident, Tim Blixseth also donated $100,000, bringing the total to $500,000.
A fifth firefighter lay in grave condition with burns over 90 percent of his body.
Firefighters labored through thick smoke as curtains of wind-whipped orange flame pushed through uninhabited brushland about 90 miles east of Los Angeles. The blaze that broke out Thursday destroyed about 10 structures, including homes, forced 700 people to flee, and flushed coyotes and other wildlife into the open.
Investigators have not said how they know the nearly 40-square-mile blaze was arson, how it was set, or why. But they said those responsible could face murder charges.
Two young men were seen leaving the area where the fire broke out about 1 a.m. Thursday.
Sources close to investigation tell CBS News that the fire was probably started by something as something as simple as a lighter, which would have been used to ignite dry grasses along the road. They say the arsonist picked the spot because it is like a wind tunnel — a nearly constant wind powers Palm Springs generators just down the road.
There have been more than 25 arson fires in the Palm Springs area in the last few weeks. But solving the case won't be easy, reports CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker. Almost three years ago to the day, another arson fire, the so-called "Old Fire," killed four people and burned thousands of houses. That arsonist has never been caught. Even if investigators do find a suspect, proving wildfire arson in incredibly difficult. They have to rule out any possibility of a natural cause or even something as simple as a spark from a car.
More than 1,700 firefighters worked to corral the advancing flames. Winds gusted to 45 mph but kept the flames moving through undeveloped land, away from homes in Riverside County. Mop-up work was under way back in the mountain communities where the flames swept through the previous day. Hundreds of people were allowed to leave an RV park where they had taken refuge, and many other families were able to return to their homes. About 400 people remained evacuated Friday evening.
The U.S. Forest Service firefighters were killed on Thursday when the wind blew a wall of flames down on them in the hills near Palm Springs as they tried to protect a home.
It was the worst disaster involving firefighters battling a wildfire since 2001, when four firefighters were trapped by flames and killed in Washington state.
James Pence, 63, said that shortly after the fire started in the town of Cabazon, he saw two unfamiliar young men leaving the area, which he said is close to a teenage hangout known as Raccoon Rock. "These kids didn't belong here. They were strange people," Pence said.
Tim Bowers, 49, said he was awakened by his dog, looked outside his trailer and saw flames on a hillside about 100 yards away. He said two unfamiliar young men walked away from the fire.
"I looked at them. They looked at me. Then they turned their heads and kept walking," Bowers said. The two were gone by the time he alerted an arriving firefighter, he said.
Sheriff's detectives interviewed the Cabazon trailer park neighbors and fielded about 100 tips.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger added $100,000 in state money to a reward already posted by Riverside County for information leading to the arsonist. San Bernardino County and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, which has a casino, added another $200,000. A Rancho Mirage resident, Tim Blixseth also donated $100,000, bringing the total to $500,000.
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