ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, May 7, 1996 TAG: 9605070048
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-6 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: PULASKI
A fire that burned about seven acres Saturday in Pulaski's Gatewood Park is being investigated as a possible arson.
Pulaski Fire Chief Jeff Hall said Monday that the heavy rain Sunday night and Monday morning helped drench the smoldering areas still left. He said he had checked with the U.S. Forest Service Monday and been told everything now seems safe.
The Pulaski Fire Department got the call Saturday shortly after 1 p.m., and spent more than four hours fighting the blaze with 19 firefighters and three pieces of equipment. A bulldozer and crew from the Virginia Department of Forestry and a U.S. Forest Service fire crew also responded.
Firefighters had to walk for about a mile into the woods to reach the blaze. Others were ferried around by boat on the Gatewood Reservoir to get to it. The bulldozer was used to plow a line around it to keep it contained.
Information about the fire was turned over to Pulaski Fire Marshal Chad Hutchinson for investigation. A spokesman for the Fire Department said preliminary indications were that the fire was deliberately set.
LENGTH: Short : 29 linesby CNB