Newsday
LITTLE EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP, N.J. — A forest fire sparked by an Air Force pilot who dropped a flare into the tinder-dry Pinelands is costing taxpayers millions.
The military has promised to reimburse victims of the fire for property lost in the May blaze.
So far, 161 claims totaling more than $200 million have been submitted. But the bulk of that amount comes from one single claim alleging $197 million in damages.
Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Melinda Davis-Perittano told The Press of Atlantic City for Monday’s newspapers that it will take several months to investigate its legitimacy.
She would not identify the claimant, or say whether it was an individual, a business or government entity. But the newspaper reported that a senior citizen development hard-hit by the blaze filed its claims jointly.
So far, the Air Force has paid approximately $2 million to reimburse residents for property damage and evacuation expenses.
Officials determined the fire started when a National Guard pilot dropped flares too low, which ignited scrub pines surrounding the Warren Grove Gunnery Range in Little Egg harbor Township.
Flames destroyed four homes in two senior citizen housing developments, and damaged 37 others. Some 6,000 people were forced to flee their homes.
Copyright 2007 Newsday
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