Bottle rocket starts 6-acre fire in Orem


OREM -- A teenage boy's bottle rocket ignited a six-acre wild fire in Orem Monday, police report.

Orem Police Sgt. Craig Martinez said the fire burned an area filled with brush and vegetation located around 800 East and 1600 North, near the cemetery. Reports of the fire were received around 2:20 p.m., he said, and crews had extinguished the blaze before 5 p.m. Three fire engines from the Orem Department of Public Safety were involved in fighting the blaze, with crews from Utah County and Provo Fire and Rescue also responding.

Martinez said several homes are located between 50 and 100 yards from the burn site, but that crews extinguished the fire before any property damage occurred. He said that the 15-year-old boy who is believed to have started the fire could eventually face juvenile charges related to the possession of illegal fireworks. But Martinez added that authorities had not yet determined if they would pursue charges.

Martinez also said that people should remember that despite the rain, vegetation is still very dry and dangerous.

"It doesn't take much to get these things started," he said.


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