Officials say it likely will take months for U.S. Marine Corps and federal authorities to complete investigations into what sparked last week´s deadly Sierra Nevada wildlife south of Reno.
The Marines are conducting an independent investigation into whether one of dozens of practice campfires set by trainees at the Marine´s mountain warfare center sparked the 22,750-acre Cannon fire near Walker, California.
Thirty-five trainees were undergoing survival training in a remote section of the Humbolt-Toiyabe National Forest where the wildfire erupted June 15th.
The blaze turned deadly June 17th when an air tanker crashed while dropping a load of fire retardant, killing the pilot and two crew members.
This post was last modified on 01/31/2009 5:26 pm