Wildfires in Arizona have recently caused closures and evacuations by the Grand Canyon. As of the evening of Saturday, July 11, the White Sage Fire had burned 19,153 acres and the Dragon Bravo Fire scorched 5,000.
The White Sage fire started about 1.5 miles from White Sage and approximately 15 miles southeast of Fredonia, according to Arizona’s Bureau of Land Management. The agency first received a smoke report on Wednesday, July 9, after a thunderstorm that had been in the White Sage area.
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The White Sage Fire then had what the Bureau of Land Management called a “significant” run on July 10, including spotting and torching because of sustained winds of 15-20 mph. These winds were “fueled by extremely dry conditions, low relative humidity, and low fuel moisture,” the Bureau said. “Extreme fire behavior” because of these dry conditions and “gusty and erratic winds” prevented firefighters from safely engaging the flames that night.
US 89A is closed from Fredonia to Bitter Springs. The Arizona Department of Transportation said on Friday, July 11 that there’s no estimated time to reopen the highway.
The other blaze, the Dragon Bravo Fire, came after a lightning strike in the Inner Canyon of Grand Canyon National Park. According to the Arizona Bureau of Land Management, the Dragon Bravo Fire had been managed with a “confine-and-contain” strategy, but the fire grew because of “hot, dry and windy” conditions.
On Thursday, July 10, Grand Canyon staff evacuated around 500 guests from the North Rim because of the White Sage Fire. The next day, all North Rim residents were put on “GO” status and told to “evacuate immediately” because of the Dragon Bravo Fire.
The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, according to the Associated Press, said it helped evacuate people from an area north of Jacob Lake, as well as people camping in Arizona’s Kaibab National Forest.
A “Complex Incident Management Team” is expected to come in on Saturday, July 12 with additional resources.
The National Park Service said on Saturday that the North Rim of the Grand Canyon is still closed until further notice.
Flames also closed Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Colorado, as lightning ignited wildfires on both its North and South Rims. The latest report from an incident map showed it was around 2,892 acres on Saturday.
Fire officials stated that they saved the Black Canyon’s visitor center by getting rid of dry vegetation and “coating the building in a layer of protective material,” the Associated Press reported.
