STAFF REPORT
DELBARTON, W.Va. — An investigation is underway after a $150,000 dozer owned by the Hatfield McCoy Trail System was torched in Mingo County. The discovery was made Tuesday evening in a remote area along the Buffalo Mountain Trail System near Delbarton and Matewan.
“We went out to the fire and found it was one of our bulldozers that somebody had vandalized and caught on fire,” said John Fekete, deputy director of the Hatfield-McCoy Trails.
The machine’s hood and door were open and investigators say it was clear the fire was set intentionally. However, Fekete said it’s the first time they’ve ever had this kind of issue, and it’s hard to imagine why it was done.
“I don’t understand it. It’s very unfortunate and it’s going to disrupt our maintenance of the trail system. April is the busiest month of the year for the trails,” he said.
The trail system owns a number of bulldozers, one assigned to each of the trail systems. The machines are used daily to maintain the off-road riding trails, which attract thousands of visitors. The work is in very remote areas, making it impractical to remove the machines and return with them each day to continue the work.
“It may go 1 mile and it may go 3 miles depending on what kind of maintenance is needed, but they’ll park it right there alongside the trail and lock it up overnight,” he said.
April is a busy time for the trail maintenance staff. It’s when the dozer gets the most use as ridership increases with improved weather and spring break visitors from out of state.
West Virginia Natural Resources Police and the Mingo County Sheriff’s department are investigating. They’re hoping somebody may have information that could crack the case and lead to an arrest. The matter has also been reported to the West Virginia Division of Forestry. According to Fekete, it’s fortunate the fire did not spread into the nearby woods and cause a forest fire.
Anyone with information can contact the Hatfield-McCoy Trails headquarters in Lyburn, West Virginia, or the DNR Police or Mingo County Sheriff’s Department.
(Information provided by WV MetroNews.)