Yesterday the Tonto National Forest Type 3 organization shadowed Southwest Area Incident Management Team 3 to assume command of the Diamond Fire this morning. Resources on the line continued containment efforts through monitoring and patrolling as minimal heat has been detected. The fuels removal project continues along the Old Beeline Highway and managers brought in an excavator and dump trucks to remove brush piles along the road.
Today’s mission is a continuation of yesterday as the type 3 team gets in place. As containment increases and heat detection decreases, resources will begin rehabbing areas of the fire and demobilizing. Ground resources remaining with the type 3 team will monitor and patrol the fire area with a focus on the western and southwestern portions of the fire, which was previously the most active and difficult to access. Some resources on the fire have been delegated to initial attack in the event of new starts in the area.
Weather: Weather patterns are trending hotter and drier with a return to triple digit temperatures and relative humidities dropping to low teens. In the event of new ignitions, current and forecasted weather will support very active fire behavior with dangerous rates of spread through the week.
Closures: The National Forest has issued a closure order for the fire area to provide public health and safety due to firefighting operations. The Old Beeline Hwy is closed to non-residents.
Evacuations: Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office has lifted the final READY notification status for residents of Sunflower, Cross F Ranch, and Diamond Ranch. Evacuations are lifted.
Fire restrictions: The National Forest is currently under Stage 1 Fire Restrictions. Please see https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/tonto/alerts-notices/?aid=81280 for more information.
Official Fire information:
Inciweb page: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/aztnf-diamond-fire.
To get the most up-to-date information about the Diamond Fire, follow us on Twitter @TontoForest or on Facebook @TontoNationalForest, or call the Tonto Fire Information Line at 602-525-1042.