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Gender-Reveal Stunt Sparked Devastating Arizona Wildfire: Video

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GREEN VALLEY, AZ — The flash of blue revealing that U.S. Border Patrol Agent Dennis Dickey and his wife, Rita, would be the parents of a boy was beautiful enough. But the Arizona wildfire it sparked in April 2017? Not so much. Video of the Sawmill Fire was released Monday by the U.S. Forest Service.

The fire scorched 47,000 acres and caused $8.2 million in damage. Dickey, who said he just planned a clever way to announce the gender of his soon-to-be-born child, pleaded guilty in September to a misdemeanor violation for causing a fire without a permit, according to The Arizona Republic, which obtained the 49-second video under a Freedom of Information Act request.

As part of his plea in federal court, Dickey agreed to pay $220,000 in restitution.

Dickey used a high velocity firearm to shoot at a target containing the explosive substance Tannerite, according to a U.S. District Court affidavit. The marker had both “girl” and “boy” written on it, and the idea was that a burst of pink or blue color would reveal the baby’s gender.

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What Dickey didn’t expect after the cloud of blue smoke was a wildfire that more than 800 firefighters would battle for a week. No injuries were reported.

“I feel absolutely horrible about it,” Dickey told The Star. “It was probably one of the worst days of my life.”

Near the end of the video, which was shot by one of the guests, a man can be heard shouting: “Start packing up, start packing up.”

Read more on The Arizona Star.

Photo and video via The Arizona Star

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