YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — Investigators have determined that sparks from a vehicle at the edge of Yosemite National Park caused a wildfire that broke out Tuesday.
The fire has burned 245 acres and is 10 percent contained. Shortly after the blaze erupted, a firefighting air-tanker crashed into a canyon wall, killing the 62-year-old pilot Geoffrey “Craig” Hunt of San Jose.
Investigators have not determined what type of vehicle or what part may have caused the sparks, saying it could be the result of several things such as trailer safety chains dragging on the pavement, vehicle brake parts generating a spark or other sources.
Meanwhile, officials say 1,000 structures are threatened and many homes are under mandatory evacuation orders in the community of Applegate, northeast of Sacramento, as fire crews battle to contain a series of wildfires along Interstate 80 that have destroyed six homes.
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APPHOTO SC101: This undated photo provided by DynCorp International shows pilot Geoffrey “Craig” Hunt who was killed Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014, while fighting the Dog Rock Fire in Yosemite National Park. Hunt, 62, a 13-year veteran pilot of Dyncorp International, was flying a S-2T air tanker, similar to the plane in the photo, under contract with the state, when his plane hit a canyon wall while fighting the blaze that has caused the closure of the major western entrance into the heart of the park. CalFire has temporarily grounded it’s fleet of S-2T’s for inspection.(AP Photo/DynCorp International) (24 Jun 2007)
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