NAPLES — A 30-acre wildfire that scorched multiple properties and caused millions of dollars in damage was ignited by a campground worker disposing of firepit ash, according to Idaho Department of Lands officials.  

On July 13, a groundskeeper at Blue Lake RV Resort was traveling from campsite to campsite collecting ash in a metal garbage can to be dumped, said Rodney Weeks, Idaho Department of Lands fire investigation program manager. When the can was set down, heat from the bottom caused grass underneath to ignite, and strong winds quickly carried the fire to nearby properties, according to a July 22 IDL press release.

Now, the resort’s owners, Nick Larsen and his mother, Liz Waitinas, face a steep financial reckoning.  

According to the Sandelin family, who own a nearby lumberyard, their losses alone will amount to several million dollars in equipment and inventory for their family-owned logging business, UTR Land Management. However, Denise Sandelin, who runs the business with her husband Paul, said they don't intend to sue for the losses.

    A barn belonging to the Sandelin family burned down in the Clover Fire.
  

Instead, the family will just focus on getting some repayment for Elisha Sandelin, who said he lost up to $300,000 in equipment for his personal trucking business in the fire.  

“To replace everything I had, yeah, it’s going to hurt. How do you even put a value on it?” said Elisha Sandelin. “That’s why there’s 24 hours in a day; you just put your head down and go back to work. That's the only way I can look at it.” 

The fire came within a few feet of Elisha Sandelin’s family home, where he lives with his wife Elizabeth and several children, before it was extinguished. Intense heat melted parts of the exterior, including the plastic front door, several windows, and sections of the roof. But everyone escaped safely. 

“We're out lots of money for sure, but we’re thankful that we still have the house and our family, and that’s most important,” said Elizabeth Sandelin. 

Resort owners must repay state for fire suppression effort 

Though Blue Lake RV Resort owners will not have to recompense all the Sandelins’ losses, they will still be on the hook for the cost of the massive, multi-agency fire suppression effort, Weeks said.  

That effort involved hundreds of first responders and 11 aircraft, including tankers and helicopters.  

“The aerial response is very expensive, with cruise time, engine time, and aircraft time,” said Weeks. “It’s up to the incident commander to make that decision. If there’s dry conditions and homes or lives at risk, they’re going to throw everything at that fire.”  

Under Idaho law, parties found responsible for human-caused wildfires are liable for the full cost of suppression. The state only covers expenses in cases of naturally occurring fires.  

Blue Lake RV Resort owners are expected to receive a series of bills from the state over the next three years as agencies finalize their expenditures, according to Weeks. The owners will have an opportunity to contest the claims in court. 

Blue Lake RV Resort ownership declined comment on the Clover Fire.

For now, the resort remains open, and several campsites are occupied by recreationalists. 

Weeks: ‘Just one mistake, and their life is ruined forever.’ 

According to Elisha Sandelin and others, a similar fire broke out from Blue Lake RV Resort two years ago, allegedly caused by the same procedure of ash disposal. But the fire was put out before it jumped to the neighboring properties. 

“It would have burnt everything, but I happened to be there,” he said. “They dumped the ashes out of the barrel in the middle of that field. It crawled right up, dangerously close to the log decks. That’s why for the last two years we’ve been careful about having our water trucks up there.”

Andrew O'Neel, Boundary County's emergency management director, confirmed that a fire did occur two years ago on the Blue Lake RV Resort property.

Weeks, who has nearly four decades of experience in wildfire response, said he’s seen small lapses in judgment cause catastrophic loss.  

“It’s just one mistake, and their life is ruined forever afterward,” he said. “I’ve seen whole towns destroyed because someone didn’t put out a fire or a hotspot.”

IDL finalized its official cause determination for the Clover Fire on July 18. However, the Idaho State Fire Marshal’s Office is still conducting its own investigation, and private insurance companies are also investigating the incident.