Tussock Fire burning north of Valley up to 5,517 acres, 17% containment
May 12, 2021, 12:30 PM | Updated: May 13, 2021, 8:35 am
(Inciweb Photo)
(Inciweb Photo)
PHOENIX — A wildfire burning north of the Valley had grown to over 5,000 acres Wednesday but saw containment increase.
The Tussock Fire seven miles southwest of Crown King has burned 5,517 acres with 17% containment as of Wednesday evening, according to InciWeb.
The human-caused blaze, which forced evacuations of three communities, had reached 4,421 acres with no containment on Monday.
The communities of Minnehaha, Fort Misery and Horse Thief Basin remain evacuated while Crown King residents are still in a “SET” status.
The town of Crown King is closed to nonresidents.
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The Red Cross shelter that opened at Mayer High School for evacuations was closed Monday.
Road closures remain in effect for Old Senator Highway between Hooper Saddle and Crown King, along with the area of Cow Tank road that leads to Forest Road 711 near Lake Pleasant.
Some forest roads in the area of Old Senator Highway at the junctions of FR 362 and FR 192 near Crown King remain closed.
While the fire is visible from Interstate 17, there are no direct impacts or road closures on the highway.
Firefighters battling the blaze aren’t expected to get much help from the weather in the coming days.
Warm temperatures, high winds and low humidity will likely slow efforts to contain the fire, authorities said.
About 400 personnel were fighting the blaze, up from about 230 on Monday.
