A ruling by an Oregon judge is serving as notice to those who even accidentally start wildfires; it’ll cost you.The teen who started the Eagle Creek Fire has a big restitution payment facing him. Hood River County Judge John A.
Olson released an opinion yesterday ordering the 15-year-old to pay more than 36-million dollars to victims of last year's Columbia River Gorge blaze. The payments, to cover the costs of firefighting, repair and restoration to the gorge and damage to homes, include money to the U.S. Forest Service and Oregon Department of Transportation."OregonLive" reports that the judge also pointed out "safety valves" in Oregon law that allow the payments to stop after ten years if the kid doesn't get into any more trouble.
The teenager, from Washington state, is on five years probation after admitting that he started the 49-thousand-acre inferno with carelessly thrown fireworks. The parents are not responsible for paying the restitution.
Source: WLWT