Dozen Large Fires Burning in Ariz., N.M.: But Region Has Plenty of Resources to Fight Them, Officials Are Confident
By Tom Beal, The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson
Jun. 21–The 1,500-acre Brins Fire is one of about a dozen large fires burning in Arizona and New Mexico.
Fortunately, the region is flush with resources. Nearly 4,500 personnel, 135 aircraft and 1,015 firetrucks, tankers and bulldozers are fighting fires or standing by, said Mary Zabinski, spokeswoman for the Southwest Area Coordination Center in Albuquerque.
The Brins Fire required a massive air assault that boosted the price of fighting it to $700,000 in its first full day. But some fires, even in this hot, dry June are being managed less aggressively, allowed to burn until they reach a “trigger point” that changes the strategy.
The Warm Fire in the Kaibab National Forest near Jacob Lake is “at 5,400 acres and cooking along quite a bit,” Zabinski said. About 280 personnel were watching and guiding the blaze, keeping it from Arizona 67 and otherwise allowing it to help clear the forest of built-up, drought-ravaged vegetation.
On Tuesday, they began actively fighting it as it approached within a mile of 69 structures at Jacob Lake.
Kaibab officials also are managing two smaller fires as “wildland fire use.”
In Southern Arizona, the 250-acre Maverick Fire in the Peloncillo Mountains east of Douglas was basically allowed to burn and has stopped growing.
There were no fires being fought in the Coronado National Forest, said Sarah Davis, a fire information officer. Campgrounds, hiking trials and picnic areas in the forest remain open. There is a ban on campfires in all but developed sites.
The Coconino forest, where the Brins Fire is burning, has closed its facilities. Other national forests in Arizona have not followed suit.
Elsewhere in the state, three fires that once threatened homes are mostly under control.
The Beaverhead Fire, which began June 15 in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest, 15 miles south of Alpine, was 1,497 acres and 70 percent contained Tuesday morning.
Also in Apache-Sitgreaves, the Potato Complex, 10 miles northwest of Heber-Overgaard, which started on June 6, was 95 percent contained and 6,262 acres Tuesday.
The Navajo Mountain 1 Fire, being fought by the Bureau of Indian Affairs 35 miles northeast of Page, was 65 percent contained at 3,350 acres.
Across the border in western New Mexico, three “wildland use” fires ranging from 600 acres to 1,830 acres are being monitored but not fought in the Gila Wilderness and the Gila National Forest. Three fires previously classified as “wildland use” are being actively fought after passing parameters set for letting them burn.
The Reserve Complex, near Reserve, N.M., consists of two fires formerly allowed to burn. The Wilson Fire, estimated at 7,800 acres, and the Martinez Fire, estimated at 6,118 acres on Monday, are now being fought by a Type I Incident Management Team, the top level of wildland firefighting.
The Skates Fire, 12 miles northeast of Silver City, also was converted to active suppression after growing to 12,000 acres and nearing homes in the area of Lake Roberts. Wayne Williams, a fire-information officer assigned to the Gila National Forest, said fire managers had devised a plan to clear and protect the area around the cabins if the fire approached.
Residents had been briefed in advance about the procedures. They were allowed to return to their homes Tuesday.
Also in the Gila National Forest, the Bear Fire was assigned a Type I team after it blew up in high winds Monday and grew to 7,000 acres its first day.
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Copyright (c) 2006, The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
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