Suspect Arrested for ‘Recklessly’ Sparking 10,000-Acre Gann Fire
Cal Fire investigators have arrested a Valley Springs man on suspicion of recklessly causing the Gann Fire, the Calaveras County blaze that has burned 10,373 acres and destroyed seven structures since Monday.
Herbert Wayne Smith, 65, was arrested Monday, the same day the fire started, following an origin and cause investigation, according to a news release. Investigators concluded Smith violated state law by operating spark-producing equipment in dry vegetation without clearing brush or keeping firefighting tools nearby. The resulting fire escaped his control and spread beyond the property, the release stated.
The case has been submitted to the Calaveras County District Attorney’s Office for review. Tim Voigt, a Cal Fire spokesperson, said the agency is “still actively investigating this incident” and had nothing further as of time of publication.
The fire ignited near Hogan Dam Road and Gann Road in Valley Springs, a rural area in the Sierra Nevada foothills, at 5:27 p.m. Monday. As of Thursday morning, Voigt said the fire saw no growth overnight and is holding at 10,373 acres with containment up to 26%, with 2,715 personnel assigned.
One firefighter has been treated and released with minor injuries. Seven structures have been destroyed, and Voigt said damage assessment teams are still in the field.
Voigt added that residents who watched a heavy column of smoke rise over the fire area on Wednesday were seeing an unrelated planned burn, not new growth of the Gann Fire. Crews ran a firing operation to consume unburned fuel between the flames and their containment lines. The smoke has since thinned, though he said firefighters will spend several more days strengthening lines.
Ross Stollerheide, the incident’s fire behavior analyst, told an operations briefing on Thursday morning that temperatures over the fire would reach about 100 degrees and that humidity climbed back only to about 24% overnight, leaving grass, brush and logs dry enough to carry fire.
Afternoon gusts could reach 20 mph.
“Any ignition within the fire perimeter or outside for that matter has the potential to outpace our suppression efforts,” he said.
In the evacuation zones, Calaveras County Sheriff’s Lt. Jason Waite said his agency is fully staffed, and the fire has not pulled deputies off normal patrol. Local, state and mutual aid deputies are patrolling heavily and going door to door, he said, and there have been no reports of looting or trespassing and no other arrests.
Deputies have been escorting residents back in to drop feed and fill water troughs when resources allow, though life-safety calls come first.
“We’re a big livestock community,” Waite said.
Some ranchers have trailered their cattle out entirely. Voigt said evacuees could bring large animals to the Calaveras County Fairgrounds and small animals to other evacuation centers.
Waite asked drivers to slow down for engines and water tenders staged along highways and for firefighters working near roadways.
“People have been extremely patient,” he said. “We’re doing our best to get this thing wrapped up for everybody.”