Kaibab National Forest

Kaibab National Forest fire managers will make another attempt at applying prescribed fire treatments on the first units of the Three Sisters Prescribed Fire Project north of Williams beginning Tuesday of next week. The project was temporarily postponed last week due to unfavorable conditions that would have presented difficulty meeting objectives and managing smoke Impacts to the community.

Kaibab National Forest fire managers will be continuing work on two prescribed fire projects located on the Tusayan Ranger District beginning this week. Crews are expecting to treat approximately 680 acres over a four day period on the Reed project located approximately 2 miles east of the town of Tusayan. An additional 300 acres on the Russell project located about 10 miles southeast of Tusayan is expected to be completed in about two days.

A one day prescribed fire operation is scheduled to occur on Saturday Oct 5 on the Williams Ranger District approximately 6 miles northwest of the community of Spring Valley. Aerial ignitions will be used to ignite an 1872 acre unit of the Marteen Prescribed fire project. This burn is expected to be completed in one operational period.

Since the wind event that occurred last weekend, fire managers have been implementing a plan to stop the growth of the 11,000-acre Ikes Fire, which is located on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park and the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest.

Kaibab National Forest fire managers will begin implementing prescribed fire treatments on the first units of the Three Sisters Prescribed Fire Project near Williams beginning Friday of this week. The project is expected to take multiple days to complete, however ignitions will only occur on days that will be most effect for meeting objectives and minimizing smoke impacts to the adjacent rural areas.

After two days of strong winds over the wildfire, minimal growth occurred in critical areas of the Ikes Fire on the Kaibab Plateau. The wildfire remained at a little more than 11,000 acres in size despite the high wind event.

Last week, two helicopters were used over portions of the fire below the canyon rim in Quaking Aspen Canyon to reduce the threat to unburned areas on Kaibab National Forest lands northeast of Fire Point. While the helicopter water drops did not entirely extinguish the wildfire, they did moderate fire behavior during the critical wind event.

In an effort to stop the Ikes Fire’s progression to the north, fire managers will utilize helicopter bucket drops in Quaking Aspen Canyon. The 11,000-acre lightning caused wildfire which is located on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park and the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest became active last week during a wind event that produced wind gusts to 45 mph.

Due to consecutive days of strong, gusty winds and below normal moisture over recent weeks, fire activity has increased again on the southwestern edge of the Ikes Fire, which is located on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park and the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest.

Effective today, the Kaibab National Forest will lift the area closure around the Castle Fire that has been in place since the lightning caused wildfire started in mid-July.

Members of the public can now access the area, which had been closed due to public safety during ongoing fire operations, including areas of active fire, and the presence of firefighting equipment and personnel. The public Is advised to have heightened awareness about potential safety hazards and exercise increased vigilance regarding personal safety.

Two new wildfires started yesterday on the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest. Multiple interagency resources, including aircraft, responded to the incidents and took immediate suppression actions to stop the fires' spread.