A fish falls from the sky and sparks a brush fire in Canada
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Authorities believe an osprey flying overhead dropped its catch mid-flight, then the fish struck power lines, producing sparks that landed on dry grass and ignited the blaze.
PHOTO: ASHCROFT FIRE RESCUE/NYTIMES
Mark Walker
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VANCOUVER - A small brush fire and power outage in British Columbia started on July 30 not with lightning or a careless camper, but with an airborne fish, according to fire officials.
With help from nearby ranchers and employees from the British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, a Canadian electric utility company, firefighters were able to contain and extinguish the blaze, Ashcroft Fire Rescue said on Facebook.
Then came the investigation. It was not a case of faulty equipment, according to fire officials. It was a fish.
The authorities believe an osprey flying overhead dropped its catch mid-flight.
The fish struck power lines, producing sparks that landed on dry grass and ignited the blaze, which took up less than 0.4ha.
The closest river, the likely place where the osprey caught its prey, is about 3.2km from the fire scene.
It is unclear why the bird let go of the fish, the authorities said, but there is at least one theory.
Ashcroft Fire Rescue wrote that it suspected that the size of the fish, combined with the heat that day, “probably caused the rather tired bird to drop its catch”.
The other possibility?
“It’s tired of raw fish and wanted to give cooked a try,” it said.
Electricity was temporarily knocked out in Ashcroft, a village of more than 1,500 people that is about 338km north-east of Vancouver.
As for the osprey, firefighters reported that “our prime suspect sustained no injuries in the incident and is still flying at large”.
The fish, charred and probably overcooked, was not so lucky. NYTIMES
