Suspect arrested in connection to Queenstone Fire in Marin County
The sheriff's office said its deputies, the Marin County Fire Department and Novato police worked to identify a suspect that may have been involved in starting the Queenstone Fire on Tuesday.
After a search of the area, the suspect was found near the Safeway on Nave Drive in Novato. The sheriff's office identified him as 34-year-old San Rafael resident Colin Crook.
According to the sheriff's office, Crook told deputies that he started the fire and burned his tent and belongings. He then left the area before fully extinguishing the fire.
The sheriff's office said Crook told them that he left the area to avoid getting in trouble as he knew starting the fire was reckless.
Crook was booked into the Marin County Jail on suspicion of recklessly starting fire to forest land and delaying/obstructing a police officer.
The vegetation fire started burning early Tuesday morning northwest of Marinwood in Marin County, according to authorities.
The incident was first reported before 5 a.m. The so-called Queenstone Fire was burning in the remote area Queenstone Fire Rd. and Chicken Shack Fire Rd. to the north of Lucas Valley Road, according to reports on Watchduty.org.
The site reported that multiple engines and a bulldozer have been requested by incident command. There are currently no evacuations reported in connection with the fire. A map showing the location of the fire is posted at emergency.marincounty.org.
As of around 8 a.m., the fire had grown to approximately 10 to 15 acres. Firefighters are at the scene with additional resources responding to the remote area.
Aerial view from a chopper indicated the fire had grown to 25-40 acres as of around 9:50 a.m. Air support was being provided by two tankers and helicopters.
Marin County Fire later provided an update, downgrading the size of the fire to 18 acres as of 12:30 p.m. The fire was 25% contained. Over 100 firefighters are on scene from Cal Fire and every fire department in Marin County.
Air support had been released from the fire as of early afternoon. At 1:48 p.m., officials reported that forward progress of the fire had been stopped and crews had increased containment to 45%.
The fire was producing smoke that was visible across Marin County and San Francisco as well as across the bay in Richmond and other parts of the East Bay.
