New Mexico Wildfire Started By Feds Trying To Prevent Same

Residents of this tiny Mozano Mountain community were devastated when a fire last month scorched 18,000 acres and destroyed a dozen homes. When they learned it was started by the federal government, they were angry. The Dog Head Fire broke out June 14 when U.S. Forest Service workers and a private contractor were using a giant shredder to clear forest debris in an ironic bid to prevent a blaze. The equipment, called a masticator, is believed to have thrown the spark that ignited the blaze that burned out of control for nearly two weeks.