A prescribed fire that left severe injuries on a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota was set without permission, the Associated Press reports.

The fire chief in Rushville, Nebraska, didn't seek approval from the owner of the land before setting the fire. He also didn't fill out a permit until after the fact.

“We didn’t feel it necessary,” Rushville Fire Chief Dwaine Sones said in a deposition that was quoted by the Associated Press. “I guess I didn’t ask the sheriff about that.”

Bryan Blue Bird is suing the village of Rushville, the volunteer fire department, Sheridan County and the Sheridan County sheriff for the fire. He suffered burns on over 25 percent of his body and has undergone several surgeries and skin grafts, and he may have to lose two of his fingers, the AP said.

Blue Bird was lying down in a field when the fire was set. Rushville is not far from Whiteclay, the reservation border town that sells millions of cans of beer to tribal members every year.

Get the Story:
Controlled fire that burned man in town along reservation set without permission (AP 10/9)

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Oglala Sioux man suing county over prescribed burn at Whiteclay (6/25)