LOWER LAKE – An illegal campfire is believed to have been the cause of a late night fire that scorched several acres at Anderson Marsh State Historic Park on Monday night.

The fire was reported just before 11:30 p.m. Monday, according to Lake County Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Charlie Diner.

He said the fire was located on the park grounds off of Lakeview Way near the white bridge.

A total of about 30 firefighters from Lake County Fire Protection and Cal Fire responded, said Diener, along with three engines and a water tender from the district and two Cal Fire engines.

The fire was located in tules, said Diener. It burned about seven acres but didn't come near any buildings.

“It was a pretty difficult fire,” said Diener. “It took us a good couple of hours.”

The reason for the difficulty was that they couldn't get engines very close, so they had to do an extensive hose lay to fight the blaze.

The engines and firefighters returned to quarters just after 3 a.m., Diener said.

Diener said an illegal camp fire is believed to be the cause.

Officials found some teenagers in the area who they spoke to about the fire, said Diener. While they don't believe those teens were responsible, they were cited by a state park ranger for another illegal campfire and littering in the park.

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