Two wildfires combine into one in southern Arizona
Jun 11, 2017, 10:16 AM | Updated: 11:30 am
(Kari Logsdon via AP)
(Kari Logsdon via AP)
PHOENIX — The Dragoon Fire and Lizard Fire merged into one wildfire on Friday in southern Arizona, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
The fires have been burning in southeast Arizona, south of the I-10 and west of highway 191. As of Sunday morning, the fire is at 14,900 acres and is five percent contained. Just under 300 personnel are working the fire.
A statement said that fire crews worked through the night to battle the fire’s threat of a church campground.
“Typically fire activity slows during evening and nighttime hours due to increased relative humidity, but the fire remained active throughout the night,” the statement said. “To this point, crews have been successful in protecting the threatened structures, but the work continues in this area.”
It was also announced that the flames were threatening power lines, prompting “brownouts” where power was shut off to some homes.
Towns nearby to the fire include Pearce, Sunsites and Cochise.
Several wildfires are across southern and eastern Arizona and the National Weather Service warned of critical fire weather conditions Sunday in parts of the state with strong winds and high gusts expected.
For information regarding sheltering, evacuations and more, please contact Cochise Emergency Operations Center at (520) 432-9820.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
