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Seasonal employee given 3 months in jail for starting Yellowstone NP wildfire

Curtis Faustich also ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution
Posted at 7:31 AM, Aug 08, 2019
and last updated 2019-08-08 09:31:44-04

A Yellowstone National Park seasonal employee pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday to starting a recent fire at the Park's north entrance.

Around 6 p.m. on July 26, a four-acre fire spread from the North Entrance Station to the Gardner River.

According to a YNP press release, Curtis J. Faustich admitted to dropping a lit cigarette on the ground while sitting at a picnic table and starting the fire.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Carman sentenced Faustich to three months incarceration and two years of unsupervised probation. He must also pay $5,000 in restitution and is prohibited from entering Yellowstone for two years.

Park officials thanked those who called the park’s 24-hour Tip Line at 307-344-2132 and provided timely incident details.