I am rather thin skinned and defensive when the hunting community takes a hit. Clearly we are continuing to take a major hit in the press because of the actions of Sergio Martinez. Martinez sit a signal fire in Southern California in 2003. The fire killed 14 people, burns over 270,000 acres, and destroyed 2,200 homes.
I was outraged at the time and still outraged. I am a pass Hunter Safety Instructor. In one section of the class we talked about fire safety in the woods. And we also discussed signal and warming fires and they were to be used with caution. Any fire must have a line around it and be extinguished.
With the opening of deer season the California Division of Forestry did a fire prevention press day with the up coming opener. They emphasized that the largest man-caused Forest Fire in the history of California was caused by a hunter. Depending on the media outlet it became a hit on hunters. The problem is that some of the criticism is well deserved.
Currently campfires outside of campgrounds are not allowed on Nation Forest, and BLM lands in the State of California. Even with major fires in the nightly NEWS abandon campfires are still a problem. I know of one deputy who encounter a number of illegal fires this last weekend. Campfires can be attributed to a varity of people camping or partying in the wild. But the press release only hit on hunters.
In regards to Sergio Martinez he more then earned all the misery that has befallen him.
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/10/07/news/top_stories/22_24_2910_6_04.txthttp://www.pipeline.com/~rougeforum/cedarfirestarter.htmlhttp://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/4272633/detail.htmlSo was he a drug crazed hunter suffering delusions from drug use. Check this link:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/fires/20041008-9999-7m8hunter.htmlI wish that there were a law to deny him hunting privileges the rest of his life. A hunter who has hydration problems 11 hours in the field is not prepared or competent to be in the woods. Could his problems been drug induced. As a 12-year old I wore a military surplus pistol belt with a canteen on it. Clearly it does not take a brain surgeon to be a safe hunter.
In another case I understand that three hunters found a wildfire the opening morning of the season. Two of the hunters fought the fire and slowed the spread, while another hunter went to a location where he could call 911 on his cellphone. My hat is off to these three hunters.
