Emergency Bulletins

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Replanting ‘king of the cactus family’ within Bush Fire burn scar remains a labor of love
11/18/2024 - 3:43 pm
wildfire | Tonto National Forest | planting cactus | Bush Fire burn scar | Bush Fire | burn scar

The saguaro cactus is a centuries-old icon of Arizona’s landscape, having appeared in more movies than actor John Wayne. Placement of the cactus in cartoons such as the “Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote” imprinted the saguaro on generations of impressionable young viewers.

These jolly green giants of the Sonoran Desert reach heights of 40 to 60 feet and can weigh between two and three tons. Saguaros stand as large green pillars atop the dusty landscape, welcoming visitors with open “arms”.

However, as a native plant in the Sonoran Desert, saguaros did not evolve in a fire-adapted...

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Continuing Prescribed Fire activity planned on the Black Mesa Ranger District
11/18/2024 - 12:56 pm
firefighters | prescribed fire operations | Black Mesa Ranger District | Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests | November 20-25 | 2024 | Rimtop project area | 1 | 286 acres | Forest Lakes | Forest Roads 195 | 105 | 9350 | constructed control lines | Woods Canyon Lake | control line | hazardous fuel reduction | high-severity wildfires | fire-resistant condition | Wildfire Crisis Strategy | 10-year Wildfire Crisis Strategy | wildfire risk | healthy fire-adapted forests | smoke visibility | Heber-Overgaard | Highway 260 | smoke impacts | Arizona Department of Environmental Quality | Air Quality Division | Smoke Management webpage | smoke-sensitive individuals | physical activity reduction | particulate-filtering respirator mask | real-time smoke mapping | fire.airnow.gov | A-S National Forests website | Facebook

Firefighters plan to continue prescribed fire operations on the Black Mesa Ranger District of the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests beginning November 20 through November 25, 2024, as weather and vegetation conditions allow for successful operations. 

The Rimtop project area is 1,286 acres and is 9 miles west of the community of Forest Lakes.  The project area is bounded by Forest Roads 195, 105, 9350, and constructed control lines. Trails around Woods Canyon Lake will also be used as a control line.

The objective is to reduce hazardous fuel accumulations, minimize the risk of...

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Palo Verde Generating Station emergency notification testing
11/18/2024 - 10:35 am
Palo Verde Generating Station | PVGS | outdoor warning sirens | local agencies | state agencies | 10-mile radius | power plant | Maricopa County | Wireless Emergency Alerts | WEA | siren test | November 20 | 12:00 p.m. | 12:15 p.m. | 12:30 p.m. | three minutes | 70 sirens | emergency managers | Alert and Notification System | federal regulations | Nuclear Regulatory Commission | NRC | Federal Emergency Management Agency | FEMA | WEA system | test area | opt-in phones | test alerts | Maricopa County Wireless Emergency Alert System | emergency | public actions | Maricopa County Department of Emergency Management | Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office | Arizona Department of Public Safety | alerting sirens | radios | televisions | Emergency Alert System | EAS message | emergency instructions

On Wednesday, November 20, Palo Verde Generating Station (PVGS), in cooperation with local and State agencies, will test the outdoor warning sirens located within a 10-mile radius of the power plant. In conjunction with the siren test and in the same 10-mile radius, Maricopa County will conduct an opt-in Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA).

Testing will involve activating the sirens twice and WEA once, sirens will be activated at 12:00 p.m. and again at 12:30 p.m. for approximately three minutes each time.  The Opt-in WEA will be tested at 12:15 p.m. Individuals will be stationed at each...

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Deadline Approaching in California for SBA Disaster Loans for property damage due to the Airport Fire
11/18/2024 - 9:11 am
SBA | southeast | recovery | rebuild | Hurricanes Helene | Hurricanes Milton | Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman | small businesses | local economies | disaster funding | physical damage | inventory | equipment | revenues | recovery centers | customer service specialists | disaster loan application | financial relief | Francisco Sánchez Jr. | Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience | Small Business Administration | California | Dec. 17 deadline | Airport Fire | Riverside County | Sept. 9-Oct. 6 | property damage | Imperial County | Orange County | San Bernardino County | San Diego County | La Paz County | Arizona | businesses | private nonprofit organizations | homeowners | renters | federal disaster loans | real estate | machinery | business assets | Economic Injury Disaster Loans | agricultural cooperatives | aquaculture | working capital needs | July 18 | 2025 deadline | mitigation | future damage | contractors | mitigation professionals | proactive improvements | personal

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Avian Influenza detected
11/15/2024 - 2:03 pm
Poultry | commercial farm | Pinal County | Avian Influenza | clinical signs | November 11 | 2024 | Arizona Veterinary Diagnostic Lab | AZVDL | preliminary determination | National Veterinary Services Laboratory | NVSL | confirmation | eggs | food supply | Safety | quality | Arizona Department of Agriculture | AZDA | supply chain | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | CDC | risk | general public | commercial farm workers | daily care | husbandry | protective actions | monitoring | CDC website | Arizona Department of Health Services | ADHS | local health departments | public health guidance | Nicole Witt | Assistant Director of Preparedness | quarantine | AZDA Director | AZDA State Veterinarian | biosecurity measures | virus elimination | sanitation responses | consumer protection | Sick Bird Hotline | USDA | cooperative extension office | local veterinarian | State Veterinarian | wild bird illness | Arizona Game and Fish Department

Poultry at a commercial farm located in Pinal County have tested positive for Avian Influenza. When the poultry began showing clinical signs consistent with avian influenza on November 11, 2024, samples from the location were submitted to the Arizona Veterinary Diagnostic Lab (AZVDL) for preliminary determination, then submitted to the National Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL) for confirmation. Eggs produced after the onset of illness have not entered the food supply. Consumers in Arizona and around the nation can remain confident in the safety and quality of eggs and egg products....

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