HERRIMAN, Utah (AP) -- As smoke filled the sky from a wildfire started by live ammunition during a military exercise, Dustin Spangler and his neighbors saw no reason to wait any longer for help.  They organized a volunteer brigade to prepare for "the fire coming over the hill."

"We built a horseshoe-shaped fire barrier around a couple of neighbors' homes," said Spangler, a 38-year-old manager of business intelligence for Internet retailer Overstock.com.  "We wet down the woods."  The actions may have saved Spangler's home, which suffered only smoke damage in the fire about 30 miles south of Salt Lake City.

The commander of the Utah Army National Guard accepted responsibility Monday for the fast-moving wildfire that led to the evacuation of 1,600 homes, saying Guard officials erred when they allowed live-fire training despite high wind warnings.