Arizona’s “Tunnel Fire” doubles in size, forcing evacuations near Flagstaff

Apr 20, 2022

Shannon Longworth Reporter

By Shannon Longworth (Reporter), Ben Burke (Producer/Editor)

Officials in Arizona reported the so-called “Tunnel Fire” doubled in sized overnight to 26 square miles by Wednesday morning. According to the National Wildfire Coordinating Group’s (NWCG) InciWeb Incident Information System, the fire was reported Sunday afternoon “approximately 14 miles northeast of Flagstaff.”

“Cause is unknown but currently under investigation,” the NWCG said. “The fire is located in an area with dry grass and brush, with scattered Ponderosa pine. Windy conditions caused this fire to rapidly spread in a northeast direction.”

Wind gusts of up to 50 mph pushed flames as high as 100 feet over a major highway Tuesday. The Tunnel Fire was headed toward Arizona’s Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, but away from the city of Flagstaff itself.

“It’s good in that it’s not headed toward a very populated area, and it’s headed toward less fuel,” Coconino National Forest spokesman Brady Smith said. “But depending on the intensity of the fire, fire can still move across cinders.”

Weather conditions were more favorable Wednesday with light breezes. However, stronger winds are expected to return Thursday.

“The National Weather Service (NWS) in Flagstaff has issued a Fire Weather Watch due to strong winds and low relative humidity, which is in effect from Thursday morning through Thursday evening,” NWS said Wednesday morning. “The combination of gusty winds and low humidity can cause fire to rapidly grow in size and intensity before first responders can contain them.”

During a Tuesday evening news conference, Coconino County officials said 766 homes and 1,000 animals had been evacuated. About 250 structures remained threatened after a couple dozen structures were already damaged.

Authorities won’t be able to determine whether anyone was injured in the Tunnel fire until flames subside. However, Coconino County Sheriff Jim Driscoll did say his office got a call about a man who was trapped inside his house. Firefighters couldn’t get to him.

“We don’t know if he made it out,” Driscoll said.

Elsewhere in Arizona, firefighters have battled but so far have yet to contain the Crooks Fire in the Prescott National Forest. The National Interagency Fire Center reported Wednesday over 2,300 wildland firefighters and support personnel were assigned to more than a dozen large wildfires in the Southwestern, Southern and Rocky Mountain areas. In addition, red flag warnings blanketed much of New Mexico on Wednesday, indicating conditions are ripe for wildfires.

Tags: Climate Change

Shannon Longworth: Brace yourself for more scenes like these.
You’re looking at a massive wildfire burning in Arizona.
The so-called “Tunnel Fire” near Flagstaff *doubled in size* overnight – now covering more than 26 square miles.
The fire’s damaged dozens of buildings and threatens hundreds more. Many people have evacuated.
And i’s not just Arizona.
The National Interagency Fire Center says they’re working to get a handle on more than a dozen large wildfires burning in the Southwest and Rocky mountain areas.
There’s also a significant fire threat in New Mexico–just a week after local officials reported a major fire in the state had turned deadly.
Kerry Gladden | Spokesperson, City of Ruidoso: “The Ruidoso police department received information that an elderly couple was missing and their family members couldn’t find them. Yesterday, the RPD detectives and New Mexico State Police investigations bureau working together with the Bonita Volunteer Fire Department located the remains of those two individuals.”
Shannon Longworth: Unusually dry conditions haven’t helped fire crews.
A recent study shows the Southwest is experiencing the driest conditions in at least 12-hundred years.
Sean de Guzman | Snow Survey Manager: “Obviously, we’re here on bare grass with only one patch of snow to actually measure. We should be standing on almost five feet of snow which is basically right where this orange tape is. We should be standing, our feet should be right standing on top of this.”