Coconino National Forest fire managers pivot to pile burns following Monday snow

Coconino National Forest fire managers plan to continue pile burning this week following Monday’s snowstorm.

Firefighters will ignite piles located in three different areas of the Flagstaff Ranger District this week, and smoke is expected to be widely visible during burning.

The Coconino National Forest uses the Coconino NF Prescribed Burn Projects InciWeb page to relay last-minute project changes with the public should planned projects not proceed due to wind, weather, or other reasons.

Snowbowl Road pile burn:

  • Date: Tuesday, Jan. 28
  • Location: North of Flagstaff. Along Snowbowl Road 2 miles north of U.S. Route 180.
  • Smoke Impact: Smoke will be noticeable along Snowbowl Road and from portions of Flagstaff, including Fort Valley and along U.S. Route 180.

Willard TS and Horse Park pile burn:

  • Date: Tuesday, Jan. 28
  • Location: South of Flagstaff. Roughly 2-to-3 miles north of Munds Park, on the east side Interstate 17.
  • Smoke Impact: Smoke will be highly noticeable from Interstate 17.

White Horse Pit pile burn:

Last week’s tentative plans to continue working on Crater Sinks—located 12 miles southwest of Flagstaff – have been put on hold until conditions are more suitable to continue work on the project.

Prescribed burns are always dependent upon multiple conditions, including personnel availability, fuel conditions, weather and approval from the Arizona Department of Environment Quality. Prescribed burns may be changed or canceled last-minute if burn conditions do not meet criteria outlined in advance.

For the latest information at any time of the day, details and updates about all prescribed burn projects can be found on the Coconino NF Prescribed Burn Projects InciWeb page, which is updated any time new information is available.

SMOKE IMPACTS

Fire managers take air quality concerns seriously and seek to minimize smoke impacts to the greatest extent possible. Despite the benefits of prescribed burns, we are aware that members of the community can be sensitive to the smoke produced. We coordinate closely with partners to keep communities informed about projects and potential smoke, as well as try to mitigate impacts to communities as much as possible. One tool to use to track air quality and smoke impacts is fire.airnow.gov.

A public hotline is available at 928-226-4608 for the public to leave their name and number if they would like to speak to fire leadership regarding smoke impacts and prescribed burn concerns.

Source
Coconino National Forest
January 28, 2025 - 09:15am
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