SABINE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, La. (AP) -- A fire started by a private landowner accidentally spread to protected marshland over the weekend, burning thousands of acres before dying out.
The blaze was set by a private landowner just above the northern boundary of the 125,000-acre refuge, said David Chisolm, the refuge's fire management officer. It burned out late Sunday, he said.
The landowner was likely burning the marsh to generate new vegetation for the upcoming duck hunting season, a common but often dangerous practice, Chisolm said.
Though a 40-foot-wide canal separates the private land from the refuge, strong south winds and dry air helped the fire jump the waterway and spread rapidly through the refuge.
Burning private land is legal, but starting a fire on private land that spreads to public land or private land owned by someone else is arson, Chisolm said.
The case has been turned over to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, he said. Chisolm did not identify the landowner.
The refuge's fishing area was temporarily shut down but reopened Monday morning.
Refuge manager Terry Delaine said the fire could have disrupted nesting alligators, but most other wildlife probably just temporarily relocated to other areas.
``Generally, most wildlife can get out of the way,'' Delaine said.
