“The cause is still under investigation. There has been progress in the case, but we can’t share any additional details at this time,” said Stanton Florea, a spokesman with the U.S. Forest Service.
Here in northern California, every local TV newscast over the last couple weeks has been filled with depressing footage of the huge Rim Fire burning near Yosemite, and in recent days the park itself has been breached.
Now we are learning that the fire was likely started by marijuana growers and that means Mexican cartels may well be the culprits.
Not that a criminal cause would be a surprise. Mexican cartels have been spewing toxic chemicals and poisoning our treasured national parks for years with minimal response from Washington.
A 2009 fire near Santa Barbara that scorched more than 137 square miles was believed to have been started by Mexican cartel growers.
A 2007 news report about a southern California fire noted common causes (Officials say illegal campfire caused blaze near Pine Valley, San Diego Union Tribune, 9/14/07):
Officials have said lightning strikes and campfires started by illegal immigrants are the two most common causes of fires in the forest south of Interstate 8.
More generally, a 2011 GAO report found that at least 30 wildfires were suspected to have been started by illegal aliens between 2006 and 2010.
[…]
