Eastpoint, Fla. (ap) — John Matthew Polous watched a “controlled-burn” fire for three days as it consumed foliage outside his tiny community on the Florida Panhandle. And then he watched as it quickly raged out of control. What he doesn’t understand is why it took government officials until Wednesday to acknowledge that they were the ones responsible for the blaze that destroyed 36 homes, including his.

Polous, a shrimper and oysterman, lost 14 boats, his home and pickup trucks in the quick-moving conflagration on Sunday that left behind a trail of ash and ruins in Eastpoint, just across the river from the historic town of Apalachicola.

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam announced on Wednesday that the fire was caused by a Tallahassee company hired by the state’s wildlife commission to do controlled burns on state lands. Putnam said an investigation by his office eliminated other possible causes, including lightning, arson or an accident.