Last week a small fire burned about four acres of brush on Lower Rock Creek Road between Paradise and Swall Meadows. Now Cal Fire Division Chief Roger Thompson reports that this fire was caused by a Mono County truck using a scraper blade to clear rocks off the road.

This does not appear to be the first time that a county truck has started a fire off of Rock Creek Road. Some reports had said that this is the third fire caused by the rock removal truck in four years, but Chief Thompson says that this is only the second one that he knows of.

Thompson says that a few years ago, another three acre fire near Paradise was started by sparks from the scraper blade. On the Rock Creek fire last week, investigators found gouged pavement and metal fragments at the point of origin.

Chief Thompson reports that Cal Fire is working with Mono Supervisor Hap Hazard and Mono County staff to find a way to avoid this situation in the future.

 

Discover more from Sierra Wave: Eastern Sierra News

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading