Friday afternoon Fire authorities were hopping
from Jackson to Plymouth when two fires broke out within an
hour of each other. The first
fire was reported around 3:30 pm near Blue
Sky Drive on Hwy 88 in between Ione and Jackson.
Two air tankers, two
helicopters and several engines from CalFire, Jackson and Jackson Valley Fire, as well as
hand crews from the Pine Grove Camp, all responded to the incident. Hwy 88 was closed from Hwy
49 in Jackson
and Sutter Creek to Hwy 104 in Ione while firefighters got the upper hand on
the blaze. The
highway reopened about 4:30 pm. The fire burned a total of 19 acres and had
fire crews occupied until late into the night. The cause of the fire is
under investigation.
As crews responded to this fire, a Calfire employee in
route from the Amador County fairgrounds back to Camino headquarters
watched as an 18 year old man set a fire along side hwy 49 near Bell Rd in Plymouth. The fire was
contained by the crews and citizens to slightly large that a patch size. The
Cal Fire Prevention unit on scene detained the man, later arresting him and
transporting him to the Amador county Jail.
