Prosecutor: Man Started California Wildfire By Pushing Burning Car Into Ravine

A man was arrested Thursday on suspicion of starting a wildfire that quickly spread to the largest California has seen this year, forcing thousands of people to flee their homes.

Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said in a statement that the man, Ronnie Dean Stout II, was being held without bail on the orders of a Butte County judge after he was identified as the person who pushed a burning car into a ravine Wednesday afternoon.

The vehicle spread flames that sparked the so-called Park Fire, which raged from about 1,400 acres (565 hectares) Wednesday night near Chico, California, to about 120,000 acres (51,000 hectares) Thursday afternoon in Northern California, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of the state capital, Sacramento.

The 42-year-old suspect was arrested by arson investigators from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) and police.

His arraignment is scheduled for Monday, Ramsey said, noting what type of arson the man might face. A spokesman for the Butte County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for details.

The Park Fire was only 3 percent contained as of Thursday afternoon and is the largest in the state so far this year, according to Cal Fire. No injuries have been reported.

More than 4,000 people were evacuated in Butte County and the city of Chico, according to Megan McMann, spokesperson for the Butte County Sheriff’s Office.

The largest fire currently burning in the United States, the Durkee fire in Oregon, has burned at least 650,000 acres, threatened several small towns, burned ranchland and killed hundreds of cattle, local media reported.

Strong winds of up to 60 mph (97 kph) and lightning strikes could fan the flames Wednesday and tonight, according to Marc Chenard, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.

The fire, about 100 miles northwest of Boise, Idaho, was 20% contained Thursday afternoon. Winds were expected to increase and lightning was possible.

“There is a zero percent chance of rain in the forecast for the region,” Chenard said.

Smoke from fires in western Canada and the Pacific Northwest is being blamed for hazy skies and unhealthy air from the Rocky Mountains to Chicago, weather reports said. Denver had the worst air quality in the U.S. and was 22nd in the world, according to IQAir, a group that tracks global air pollution.

According to weather reports, the sky may clear later on Thursday as a high pressure area approaches, bringing clearer skies.

Scientists and environmentalists have long called on world leaders to phase out reliance on fossil fuels to avoid catastrophic consequences of climate change, including worsening wildfires.