Fall prescribed fire operations to begin September 30 around Tusayan and Williams
Fire managers on the Williams and Tusayan Ranger Districts of the Kaibab National Forest are planning to conduct prescribed fires throughout October as conditions allow, starting with the Three Sisters project located just north of Williams, AZ.
Crews plan to begin ignitions Monday, September 30, burning up to 2,600 acres over the course of multiple days. Smoke may be visible from the greater Williams area and daytime winds should carry smoke northeast. Residual smoke will settle into drainages and low-lying areas around Williams and Red Lake overnight. Other projects planned for this fall include:
Tusayan Ranger District (6,894 acres): 4 units in the Bluestem project area around Buckler Ranch and Russell Tank, which continues to implement fire treatments from east to west and provide current fuels reduction efforts around some of the values at risk.
Williams Ranger District (14,708 acres): 10 units planned, including units near the Williams airport and in the Holden area past the golf course, around the Spring Valley community on Forest Road 141 north of Parks, units just east of highway 64, and units south of Interstate 40.
Exact ignition dates are unknown as burning is dependent upon daily agency administrator approval and conditions within the ranges outlined in each prescribed fire plan. However, we are committed to providing the public with ongoing updates and as much advance notice as possible. Sign up to receive Kaibab NF news releases in your email.
Our land management strategy is centered on long-term forest health, including reducing forest fuels and using prescribed fire on the landscape. Prescribed fires help reduce hazardous fuels that have accumulated due to drought, climate change, insects and disease, and decades of fire suppression. Fire also recycles nutrients back to the soil, promotes the growth of trees, wildflowers, and other plants, and improves habitat for threatened and endangered species. These efforts align with the Forest Service’s 10-year Wildfire Crisis Strategy which aims to increase prescribed fire and other treatments to improve forest resiliency for generations to come.
We recognize that smoke can impact residents, visitors, and our fire personnel. We will continue to coordinate closely with our partners and communities to minimize smoke impacts as much as possible. All prescribed fires on the Kaibab National Forest are subject to Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. The department’s Air Quality Division: Smoke Management webpage provides details about its air quality program.
Information can be found on the Kaibab NF website, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, or by calling the local ranger station.
