Station fire was arson, officials say; homicide investigation begins

The Station fire has been classified as an arson fire, and authorities have launched a homicide investigation.

The massive blaze, which killed two firefighters, has been under investigation for days, with the focus being on a road turnout along Angeles Crest Highway north of La Cañada Flintridge.

“Forensic examination has led this team effort to conclude … that it was an act of arson," said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore.

The Station fire, which has burned about 144,000 acres of the Angeles National Forest, is the largest fire in L.A. County history. Two firefighters died Sunday during a rescue effort, when their vehicle plunged down a mountain.

On Wednesday, investigators hunched under a scorched, 20-foot-tall oak tree off Angeles Crest Highway, using wire mesh sifters to search through the ash in an attempt to determine whether the Station fire was deliberately set.

Near Mile Marker 29, authorities were treating the fire's suspected ignition site as a crime scene. Yellow tape cordoned off the area and authorities blocked the highway, turning away even Caltrans workers and earthmovers. Members of the bomb squad also arrived at the scene but officials declined to say what their role was in the probe.

"We believe it is the point of origin," Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Mike McCormick said Wednesday. "They are doing a finely detailed, serious, serious search and investigation. We lost two firefighters in this."

-- Ari B. Bloomekatz

Photos: Wildfires | High-res | Mapped	Interactive map: The Station fire

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Twitter: Follow @latimescitydesk | @latimesfires

Comments

[andy]

why is it called "the station fire"

[Shawn]

If they catch this person, he deserves the death penalty!

[Raul Garcia]

Arson?

[mv]

This is *government* at its finest! Support our professional AND publicly funded fire fighters, cops, air traffic experts, meteorologists (AQMD and NOAA) and civic leaders.

Roll back Prop 13!

[SMRR]

Mike Davis, Ecology of Fear. "Ignition is irrelevant." Was it arson in Palos Verdes? Where are all the East Coast Arsonists?

[bckm]

It's called the "Station" fire because it started near a Forest Service Ranger Station, I think.

[D]

Andy, it started near the ranger station and Shawn i couldnt agree more. they should burn the idiot at the stake.

[Jamie from PA]

@SSMR - Have you ever been out of California? The East Coast is humid and gets a lot of rain. The forests don't burn as easily and readily as they do out here because it's a completely different ecosystem and climate.

[Kai-]

I wonder why all this stuff seems to happen in California, especially LA County.

[G. Friday]

Good call, bckm. I'm going to dust off Ecology of Fear between now and the mudslides to follow.

[steve]

why is it called the station fire?

[jessica]

its the station fire because it was first spotted from a ranger station.

[vivalakres]

California, especially Southern California, has been enduring a drought for the last couple of years which has made it very susceptible to fires. LA County is filled with a lot of rugged, wild natural areas so that combined with the dryness of the region are a factor. The one positive thing about this is that at least this did not happen when the Santa Anas were blowing or this could have been much, much worse. That said, God bless those courageous firefighters and my prayers go out to the families of those who died.

[Joe Shea]

At some point, I think, we're going to experience these fires as terrorist acts.

[bob]

wait guys so why is it called the station fire?

[Geoff Wilford]

"...wait guys so why is it called the station fire?..."

It is common practice to name incidents to prevent confusion on the radio between different incidents that may be near-by each other. Names are usually drawn from geographical references (i.e. the "Morris Fire" started near Morris Dam) to simplify the process and prevent unpronounceable or personal names. In this case the original report was of a brush fire located 1/2 mile above the Angeles Crest Ranger Station. The ranking officer responding picked "Station" as the name to shorten it up. It could have just as easily been called the "Angeles Fire" - but since you are on the Angeles National Forest it probably already had been used, or the the "Ranger Fire" but that doesn't quite sound right, so "Station" was probably the first option that met the incident naming criteria.

[Fiona]

Last year there was a ranger station on the eastern side of the Sierras near Bishop that was burned down -- arson too. What is up with all the crazies going after the Forest Service?!

[Doug]

Interesting. A previous L.A. Times blog, from August 16, 2009, is titled "Huge Santa Barbara County wildfire caused by marijuana farm; suspects at large in forest". Link: http://tinyurl.com/p978zx -- the article states ""The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Narcotics Unit has confirmed that the camp at the origin of the fire was an illegal marijuana operation believed to be run by a Mexican national drug organization," according to a statement from the Los Padres National Forest. "The Narcotics Unit has been working in the area within the last month eradicating other nearby marijuana cultivation sites."

Of course, there could be multiple ignition points for this fire, with the fires merging into the one big "Station" blaze. But, if so, isn't it interesting that most news stories coming out now say that it's arson, and nothing is mentioned about the cartel-run marijuana plantations and the probable cause being a cooking fire in one of these encampments. Can you say "coverup"?

[Kevin]

I say let's find the arsonist, and put him in a room with the rest of the firefighters who fought the fire.

Whatever happens, happens....

[Tony]

Boy, there sure are a lot of conspiracy theorists out there. These people are so out of touch with reality it's laughable. There have been numerous wildfires in recent years in the western U.S. The wildfires in Colorado, Utah, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona? Are those places close to L.A.? Idiots! Now it's a coverup for the USFS burning out a marijuana plantation? Haven't you watched any TV news coverages when they've uncovered them? They cut them down, helicopter them to a safe location, then burn them. Idiots! Whay do idiots even expose themselves for what they are by commenting and revealing how ignorant they are? I guess that's what idiots do.

[SMRR]

Jamie,
That's the point, you fool. We shouldn't be building new residential development in tinderboxes. Shouting 'arson' is absurd, the area is a natural fire hazard. It doesn't matter what started it, it is the fact that any errant flame will create an inferno that envelopes the area.