Wallow Fire – Taking Control
The spread was limited to just over 2000 acres, and containment is up to 58%. Better weather really helps the effort to control wildfires.
Also note that the number of structures that are threatened has also been reduced over the last couple of days, indicating that the lines around the populated areas are holding.
Information from the current Wallow Fire InciWeb Page
- Date Started: 5/29/2011
- Location: Apache, Navajo, Graham, and Greenlee Counties, San Carlos and White Mountain Apache Reservations, Arizona; Catron County, New Mexico
- Cause: Human – under investigation
- Size: 529,825 acres [828 miles² 2144 km²] based on infrared data
- Percent Contained: 58%
- Injuries to Date: 12
- Residences: 1,511 threatened; 32 destroyed; 5 damaged
- Commercial Property: 162 threatened; 4 destroyed
- Outbuildings: 400 threatened; 36 destroyed; 1 damaged
- Other: 1 truck destroyed
- Number of Personnel: Approximately 3,389 including 10 hotshot crews and 45 hand crews
- Equipment: 21 dozers, 189 engines, 72 watertenders
- Aircraft: 16 helicopters, 5 air tankers
- Incident Commander: Jim Loach, Area Command Team 3
The southern flank of the fire continues to be difficult to control. Yesterday on the south end, firefighters responded to, contained and mopped-up a 16 acre spot fire west of US 191. Firefighters will continue to explore possible locations for containment lines to the south of Raspberry Creek where the fire continues to spread. The strategy remains to keep the fire east of US 191 and west of the Blue River drainage. Firefighters are working to bring the fire to the bottom of the Blue River drainage while keeping the containment line secure and providing structure protection. The fire has reached the west side of the road across from Blue Camp. Crews are building containment line to the west from US 191 to Stray Horse, and have completed construction of control lines on the south end of the fire between McBride Canyon and US 191. Burnout operations have begun north of this line and will continue as conditions allow.
Supported by large air tankers, military air tankers out of Kirtland Air Force Base and helicopters, firefighters made good progress building line around the perimeter of the fire northeast of Luna, N.M. There was some fire movement towards the northwest and west but not towards the Tucson Electric power lines.
Firefighters are continuing mop-up and fireline repair activities throughout the fire. Repair activities include using chippers to treat the slash that was created by fireline construction operations. Seeding of repaired firelines has been completed on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation.
With lighter winds, crews were able to make good progress and safely access areas of the fire that have been inaccessible due to high winds and dangerous snags.
…Power remains out in Hannagan Meadow and portions of the area north of the Blue River.
Today the weather will be sunny with highs near 87-91 and northwest winds between 6 and 10 mph. Probability of ignition from spot fires is 100%.
[For the latest information click on the Fire symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Fires” for all of the posts related to wildfires on this site.]
