Coconino National Forest to lift fire restrictions Monday

The Coconino National Forest will lift all fire restrictions on Monday at 6 a.m. because of the recent rainfall across the forest from monsoon activity, authorities said Sunday.

Despite the restriction lifts, the parts of the forest that were closed for permanent year-round fire restrictions will remain in effect, which can be found online.

Additionally, Oak Creek is temporarily closed due to flooding.

As visitors make their way back into the Coconino National Forest, authorities have some best practices for building a campfire to remain safe:

• Use established fire rings, fire pans or mound fires
• Keep the fire small and never leave it unattended
• Use at least six gallons of water and a shovel to completely extinguish
• Make sure the fire is dead out, wet and cold to the touch before leaving

Other important rules to be aware of:

• Down and dead firewood can be gathered and used at a campsite, but loading it into a vehicle and removing it from the forest is illegal without a permit
• Do not cut standing trees or remove limbs from standing trees

The Coconino National Forest can put the fire restrictions back in place at any time for safety purposes. The decision to lift the restrictions was due to the amount of rainfall and expected future rainfall across all three districts of the forest.

The recent precipitation also allowed fire restrictions to ease on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon Sunday.

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