AZ Wildfire Sparks Federal Charges

In the current issue of The Drake, contributor Bill Watt reports on the largest wildfire ever recorded in Arizona, which sparked in the Bear Wallow Wilderness Area on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest. “The East and West Forks of the Black River are popular with flyfishers and are two of the streams the state has focussed on for its Apache recovery efforts,” he writes. “Unfortunately, unlike the Rodeo-Chediski Fire of 2002, which burned farther downstream in the Black’s watershed, the Wallow burned high up in the Black, Blue, and Little Colorado drainages, meaning there could be more of an impact on trout.” (Full article, here.)

Late last week, The U.S. attorney’s office charged two cousins Caleb Joshua Malboeuf, 26, of Benson and David Wayne Malboeuf, 24, of Tucson. The men each face five counts, including leaving a fire unattended and failing to maintain control of a fire that damaged a National Forest System. A conviction for each of the offenses charged carries a maximum penalty of six months in prison, a $5,000 fine, or both.

“Winds whipped the Wallow fire as it burned more than 538,000 acres in eastern Arizona and parts of western New Mexico, destroying 32 homes, four commercial structures and 36 outbuildings.”

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