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Thune Says Park Service Should Accept Liability For Wildfire

Associated Press0

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — U.S. Sen. John Thune says the National Park Service should change its prescribed burn policies and accept full liability for damages and expenses related to the wildfire at Wind Cave National Park.

Thune made the comments in a letter to U.S. Secretary of the Department of Interior Sally Jewell after strong winds caused a prescribed burn to scorch about 6,500 acres of park land.

Tom Farrell, the park’s chief of interpretation, says the park has performed thousands of prescribed burns over the past decades and successfully burned millions of acres to prevent more catastrophic wildfires. He says the park service will review what happened and will share its findings with the state’s congressional delegation.

Farrell didn’t say whether the park service was considering Thune’s call for liability.

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