Kaibab National Forest

Due to monsoonal activity and heavy rainfall across most of the forests, the Coconino and Kaibab National Forests will rescind all fire restrictions as of 6 a.m. Friday, July 16. The Kaibab NF will also lift the Bill Williams Mountain closure.
 

A Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Team was established to begin a burned area assessment of the Rafael wildfire. BAER assessments are rapid evaluations of the burned area to identify unacceptable risks on National Forest Service (NFS) lands from post-fire threats and assist land managers in preparing the burned area prior to the first damaging weather event. The team’s focus is on the emergency actions necessary to protect life and safety, property and critical natural and cultural resources on NFS lands.

A Type 3 Incident Command Team led by Incident Commander Troy Mueller, assumed management of the Rafael Fire today at 6 a.m. Crews continued with mop up, patrol and suppression repair work.

Today, crews will continue to patrol and mop up around the fire to secure the perimeter. Interior areas of the fire are expected to continue to burn and there may be smoke visible as these areas continue to burn. The Burned Area Emergency Response team is in place and is continuing assessing burn severity over the entire fire.

For information on evacuation status,and fire activity,there will be a virtualcommunity meeting every day at 6 p.m. until furthernotice, on the Incident Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RafaelFireInfo/ 

The Coconino National Forest is still working to contain the Slate Fire, which is located along Highway 180 and has grown to 2,000 acres.

The fire originated on June 7 approximately 23 miles northwest of Flagstaff on the west side of U.S. Highway 180, adjacent to the Kaibab National Forest. It is currently moving in a northeast direction.

The Coconino National Forest is responding to the 20-plus-acre Slate Fire located in the northern part of the Flagstaff Ranger District near Highway 180 and the border of the Kaibab National Forest.

Roughly 50 personnel -- including four engines, two crews, a water tender and a dozer -- have been dispatched to the fire.

Traffic along Highway 180 may be affected.

The fire was called in at about 4 a.m. and the cause is still under investigation.

Coconino County will move to Stage One fire restrictions in the unincorporated areas of the County, including on private lands, in coordination with similar actions by the Coconino and Kaibab National Forests and other agencies in the area. Fire restrictions are effective Friday, May 14 at 8:00 a.m.

A new lightning caused wildfire discovered earlier this week on the southeast end of the Williams Ranger District will be allowed to burn naturally within a pre-determined management area to reduce fuel loads and promote healthier landscapes.

Kaibab National Forest fire managers will be continuing work on the Reed Prescribed Fire project located on the Tusayan Ranger District approximately 3 miles northeast of the town of Tusayan beginning Monday of next week.

Crews will begin ignitions on a 117-acre unit near the junction of forest roads 9121G and 9121GA northeast of the Ten X Ranch. Additional units may be burned into the week ahead providing weather conditions remain favorable to achieve desired effects that meet land management objectives.

Beginning April 17, National Park Service and USDA Forest Service fire managers, working together as the North Zone Interagency Fire Management Program, anticipate initiating prescribed burns on the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  Over the next several weeks fire managers will be assessing weather, fuel moistures, and other conditions for opportunities to conduct burns safely and effectively.