Other than being human caused, the actual source of the Funny River Fire has never been determined.
The fire began as a 1.5 to 2 acre blaze three miles south of the Soldotna airport one year ago today and Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Manager Andy Loranger detailed what’s been established so far.
Loranger: “The findings of the investigation relative to how the Funny River Fire started was that it was definitively human caused, we know there was no lightening that day anywhere in the area, however the actual source of ignition could not be determined because there wasn’t any physical evidence at the site. The site of the fire where it initially started was pinpointed but again there was no physical evidence to direct a definitive determination of how the fire started.”
The refuge and cooperating agencies had requested the public’s tips about anyone seen in the area through the remainder of 2014, as the human caused fire began near an area nicknamed “the Wood Cut”.
The erratic winds of the season drove the fire to consume over 195,858 acres last summer, the largest wildfire for the entire nation in 2014.