HENDERSON COUNTY, N.C. (WSPA) – Officials in North Carolina have cited a man in connection with a debris burn which sparked the Poplar Drive Fire in Henderson County.
According to the North Carolina Forest Service, 51-year-old Duff Swan, of Maitland, Florida, was cited and charged with NC General Statute 14-140.1, which states that a burn must have a “careful watchman in charge of the burning.”
The wildfire grew to 434 acres and is now 98% contained.
The forest service said the fire started during a debris burn on private property on October 26.
One home, two cabins, an uninhabitable mobile home, an uninhabitable cabin, and two outbuildings were destroyed by the fire which also damaged another home.
Two firefighters suffered minor injuries resulting from the fire.
The citation carries a maximum fine of $50.