Bonfire busted on H-in-G bridge

Five people were arrested at the scene of a bonfire and party on the Hole-in-the-Ground bridge on Belsby Road south of Bonnie Lake early Saturday morning.

According to a report filed by Reserve Deputy Scotty Anderson, he noticed a campfire on the bridge while patrolling the area at 1:18 a.m. Saturday morning.

Dep. Anderson stopped to investigate and ordered the youths to extinguish the fire.

Kyle Norman, 19, Mica, Steven Burke, 19, Spokane, Beau Barnes, 19, Aberdeen, and Anna Smithgall, 19, Spokane, were cited with minor in consumption violations. The fifth, Blake Eugene Marlow, 21, Rockford, was cited for furnishing liquor to minors.

All five were cited and released.

Deputy Prosecutor Joe Jackson said the suspects could still face malicious mischief charges, pending outcome of the ongoing investigation.

Sheriff Brett Myers said he had instructed deputies to keep a close eye on the area.

Officials in the county road department had contacted Myers about the bridge after discovering the charred remains of bonfires there.

Public Works Director Mark Storey said such fires accelerate the deterioration of both the concrete bridge deck and its support. The heat, he explained affects concrete and steel differently, which would cause separation and cracking. Eventually, the steel rebar would begin to poke through the road surface.

Convictions on malicious mischief charges could include a court order to pay for damages done, Storey said.