Top House Democrat seeks answers on Grand Canyon fire
Rep. Jared Huffman called out both the Interior and Agriculture secretaries in a letter to President Donald Trump.
The top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee is asking President Donald Trump how his administration initially responded to a still-burning wildfire in Grand Canyon National Park.
In a letter Monday addressed to Trump, Rep. Jared Huffman, a Democrat from California, said political appointees like Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins are ultimately responsible for how the Dragon Bravo Fire was managed.
“As you have insisted in many, many other cases, the ultimate responsibility for policy decisions lies with you and your appointees, not with career civil servants,” Huffman wrote to the president.
“Yet incredibly, we have not heard anything from you, or from Secretaries Burgum and Rollins about this massive fire and the destruction it has wrought [on] one of America’s most iconic national parks.”
A lightning strike on July 4 sparked the fire, which rapidly grew to more than 12,700 acres of a conifer, aspen and ponderosa pine forest on the Grand Canyon’s less popular North Rim.
Driven by dry conditions, hot weather and wind, the fire burned through more than 60 structures including the historic Grand Canyon Lodge. A water treatment facility was also burned. Nearly 900 fire response personnel continue to work on the fire under a multiagency team, as of Monday.
Firefighters initially managed the Dragon Bravo Fire with a “confine and contain strategy,” but that effort was upgraded to a full suppression strategy as the fire grew.
Huffman questioned the initial approach in his letter. "This fire was allowed to burn for days before necessary action was taken to prevent it from threatening — and ultimately destroying — the cherished and irreplaceable historic lodge, cabins, and other buildings on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. It is fortunate that no lives have been lost,” the letter states.
Huffman requested information on when Rollins and Burgum were first notified of the Dragon Bravo Fire and how often they were updated.
The letter also asks whether their federal agencies asked for any additional resources that were not provided. They also wanted to know whether the number of authorized fire personnel for the Dragon Bravo Fire was comparable to historic fires.
Huffman and other Democrats have previously warned that the Trump administration’s efforts to cut staffing and budgets to the Interior Department and the U.S. Forest Service could undermine wildland fire response.
Last week, the Interior Department defended its initial handling of the fire, in the wake of criticism from Arizona's Democratic senators and governor.
"Some have chosen to politicize this situation while firefighters are still out there risking their lives. That’s shameful," Interior spokesperson Elizabeth Peace said in a statement at the time. "Our wildland firefighters are among the best in the world and will always prioritize life and safety over infrastructure."
By: Heather Richards
Source: Politico Pro
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