Video captures dramatic moment that caused Sawmill Fire
Nov 26, 2018, 6:15 PM | Updated: Nov 27, 2018, 9:09 am
PHOENIX — Video has surfaced of the moment an explosion started the Sawmill Fire that damaged more than 45,000 acres of land in Arizona in April 2017.
In the 49-second video from the U.S. Forest Service, the sound of a nearby rifle can be heard shooting at a target filled with Tannerite, a highly explosive substance, for a gender-reveal party.
Moments after the shot lands, the target explodes and the nearby brush catches fire.
Dennis Dickey, a border patrol agent from Tucson, pleaded guilty in September to a misdemeanor violation of U.S. Forest Service regulations.
Dickey, 37, immediately reported the fire and admitted to being responsible for it, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona.
In the video, a man, whose identity was blurred, can be heard telling others to “start packing up” following the explosion.
Dickey agreed to a sentence of five years’ probation. The fire caused $8 million in damages.
