NJFFSA16
05-01-2002, 02:43 AM
From the Associated Press wires:
SONOITA, Ariz. (AP) - A wildfire driven by strong winds raced
across more than 25,000 acres of dry grass and oak brush in
southern Arizona on Tuesday, destroying one home and two barns and
forcing residents to evacuate rural homes and ranches, fire
officials said.
No injuries had been reported. Forest Service spokesman Steve
Plevel said firefighters had saved 50 to 100 buildings as the Ryan
fire spread in an area southeast of Tucson.
The head of the fire was moving toward Huachuca City on Tuesday
night. Firefighters were trying to cut fire lines on the blaze's
flanks.
Joan Vasey, another forest spokeswoman, said the fire was 5
percent contained by Tuesday night.
Plevel said the focus was on protecting lives and property.
The fire began Monday in rugged terrain in the Canelo Hills of
the Huachuca Mountains and grew quickly Tuesday, driven by wind
gusting up to 30 mph. The cause was unknown.
Sixteen homes were evacuated at one point near where the fire
began, but Plevel said the fire had bypassed those areas by Tuesday
evening.
There were more evacuations later on near Fort Huachuca, a
sprawling Army reservation, but it wasn't clear how many homes were
involved. Military firefighters were trying to keep the fire from
spreading off the post toward Huachuca City.
Displaced residents were being directed to four shelters.
As it moved, the fire sent up a broad band of gray smoke that
could be seen hanging over the horizon from as far away as Tucson,
50 miles away.
Renee Brown, a massage therapist who lives in Elgin, about 10
miles from the fire, said she could see a line of flames from her
house.
"Everyone's keeping an eye on it, but I'd have to see it coming
a lot closer to evacuate," she said. "Most of the people around
here are hanging tight for the time being."
Cut off from his home, which wasn't threatened but was down a
road blocked by fire, Steve Dickens sat at the bar in The Steak Out
restaurant in Sonoita, drinking a beer.
"I've been here 17 years and I've never seen anything like it -
I've never seen Arizona this dry," Dickens said.
Five air tankers dropping retardant and five helicopters lugging
large buckets of water fought the blaze, directed by four other
aircraft.
About 360 firefighters and support staff were working the fire,
which has cost $692,000 to fight so far.
Arizona 83 was closed south of milepost 20, and the Forest
Service set up a regional management team at a ranch in the area.
Farther north, a wildfire in the Superstition Wilderness in the
Tonto National Forest east of Phoenix remained at about 20 acres
Tuesday.
Tonto spokesman Stanton Florea said the Reevis fire was about 50
percent contained.
The fire was likely caused by someone who was hiking or camping
in the remote area of the eastern Superstition Mountains, he said.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/
Coronado National Forest: http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/coronado/
SONOITA, Ariz. (AP) - A wildfire driven by strong winds raced
across more than 25,000 acres of dry grass and oak brush in
southern Arizona on Tuesday, destroying one home and two barns and
forcing residents to evacuate rural homes and ranches, fire
officials said.
No injuries had been reported. Forest Service spokesman Steve
Plevel said firefighters had saved 50 to 100 buildings as the Ryan
fire spread in an area southeast of Tucson.
The head of the fire was moving toward Huachuca City on Tuesday
night. Firefighters were trying to cut fire lines on the blaze's
flanks.
Joan Vasey, another forest spokeswoman, said the fire was 5
percent contained by Tuesday night.
Plevel said the focus was on protecting lives and property.
The fire began Monday in rugged terrain in the Canelo Hills of
the Huachuca Mountains and grew quickly Tuesday, driven by wind
gusting up to 30 mph. The cause was unknown.
Sixteen homes were evacuated at one point near where the fire
began, but Plevel said the fire had bypassed those areas by Tuesday
evening.
There were more evacuations later on near Fort Huachuca, a
sprawling Army reservation, but it wasn't clear how many homes were
involved. Military firefighters were trying to keep the fire from
spreading off the post toward Huachuca City.
Displaced residents were being directed to four shelters.
As it moved, the fire sent up a broad band of gray smoke that
could be seen hanging over the horizon from as far away as Tucson,
50 miles away.
Renee Brown, a massage therapist who lives in Elgin, about 10
miles from the fire, said she could see a line of flames from her
house.
"Everyone's keeping an eye on it, but I'd have to see it coming
a lot closer to evacuate," she said. "Most of the people around
here are hanging tight for the time being."
Cut off from his home, which wasn't threatened but was down a
road blocked by fire, Steve Dickens sat at the bar in The Steak Out
restaurant in Sonoita, drinking a beer.
"I've been here 17 years and I've never seen anything like it -
I've never seen Arizona this dry," Dickens said.
Five air tankers dropping retardant and five helicopters lugging
large buckets of water fought the blaze, directed by four other
aircraft.
About 360 firefighters and support staff were working the fire,
which has cost $692,000 to fight so far.
Arizona 83 was closed south of milepost 20, and the Forest
Service set up a regional management team at a ranch in the area.
Farther north, a wildfire in the Superstition Wilderness in the
Tonto National Forest east of Phoenix remained at about 20 acres
Tuesday.
Tonto spokesman Stanton Florea said the Reevis fire was about 50
percent contained.
The fire was likely caused by someone who was hiking or camping
in the remote area of the eastern Superstition Mountains, he said.
---
On the Net:
National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/
Coronado National Forest: http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/coronado/