Utah man arrested for extinguishing a brush fire

The brush fire that Santaquin residents quickly extinguished, resulting in one arrest. (Source: Nick Miller)

SANTAQUIN, UT — A man was arrested for disorderly conduct and obstructing justice when he refused to stop spraying water on a brush fire that had ignited in a field behind his home.
The incident happened on July 4th in a field located behind a row of houses. At approximately 9:30 p.m., some brush caught fire due to errant use of fireworks. Spectators quickly assisted and one woman called 9-1-1 for help.
“An apparent spark lit a tree over there from an old orchard on fire,” said 36-year-old Santaquin resident, Jason Thornton. “Myself, my two nephews, and a few neighbors rushed to action, got our hoses out, contained the fire to one tree, waiting for the fire department to show up.”
Mr. Thornton continued: “While fighting the fire, somebody said, ‘stop!’ I told them, ‘no’ in a very unpolite way. He told me again to stop. I said, ‘No, I’m manning this fire. I’m not stopping until the fire department gets here.’”


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