California couple whose gender reveal sparked wildfire charged with 30 crimes

A couple whose gender reveal party ignited a southern California wildfire that killed a firefighter have been charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Refugio Manuel Jimenez Jr and Angela Renee Jimenez used a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device that sparked the El Dorado blaze last September. It torched nearly 23,000 acres, destroyed numerous homes and buildings and claimed the life of a firefighter, Charles Morton.

The couple pleaded not guilty to 30 crimes related to the fire, San Bernardino county’s district attorney told a press conference on Tuesday.

Heat waves and extremely dry conditions fuelled by the climate crisis are making wildfires more dangerous to fight.