Northern Nevadan accused of keeping firefighters away from burning house

WADSWORTH — A Northern Nevada man was arrested after holding firefighters at bay with a fireplace poker outside a burning house, according to tribal officials.

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe spokesman Don Pelt told the Reno Gazette-Journal that the man confronted crews responding to the fire at a home in Wadsworth on Thursday night.

Pelt said the man wielded the fire poker until police arrived and he was arrested.

The man was the owner of the house, and the standoff lasted about 30 minutes, according to KTVN-TV. His name wasn’t immediately made public.

Pelt said that once firefighters got into the house, the fire was quickly extinguished.

He told the Gazette-Journal the cause of the fire was being investigated, but officials considered it suspicious.