A fire was started on the Point Thomson Airstrip runway in Deadhorse Thursday after airport staff tried to scare off a caribou.
“Airport personnel attempted to drive wildlife off the runway using small explosives deployed from shotguns, known as Bangers,” stated a report from Alaska Wildland Fire Information. “In the course of operations, the runway was set on fire.”
The Greater Prudhoe Bay Fire Department responded to the incident and extinguished the burning runway, which was reported to be approximately one-eighth of an acre.