(GoRealNewsNow.com) – Following the massive damage caused to an entire wildlife ecosystem and a community, a man was arrested on arson charges for starting a 34,000-acre fire in California.
According to a police report from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department (SBSD), Justin Wayne Halstenberg was taken into custody and is being held on $80,000 bail.
Local detectives and state fire marshals identified him as the suspect who ignited a fire in Highland, California, which grew into a massive blaze known as the Line Fire.
The SBSD report said that the 34,000-acre wildfire began on September 5 and has spread quickly through the San Bernardino mountains due to warm weather and strong winds.
As for this week, the fire was only 14% contained.
“Highland Station detectives, in collaboration with Cal Fire investigators, identified Justin Wayne Halstenberg as the suspect who started a fire in the area of Baseline Road and Alpin Street in the city of Highland, also known as the Line Fire, on September 5, 2024,” the report stated.
According to Reuters, about 18,000 people had been evacuated from their homes, and law enforcement was patrolling deserted neighborhoods to prevent looting.
The Line Fire is one of three major wildfires currently burning in California.
Another blaze, the Airport Fire, has engulfed 23,000 acres in Orange County, while a third is consuming 48,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains near Los Angeles.
“There was no more exit, you had to drive through the flames to get out,” Ryan LaMothe, whose home was destroyed by the Airport Fire, told local television station KTLA5.
The SBSD report did not provide details on Halstenberg’s motive or how he allegedly started the fire.
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