The Crooks Fire burning south of Prescott is still at 1600 acres and zero percent contained. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny reports, several areas remain under evacuation orders.
Windy conditions grounded aircraft yesterday and drove the fire northeast.
Debbie Maneely, a spokesperson for the Prescott National Forest, says a Type 1 Incident Management Team will assume command of the Crooks Fire this evening. She says, "The Type 3 team did an amazing job for the forest on this fire, but they’re a smaller team with limited resources, so as we go to a Type 1 we can get those additional specialized resources to help us out as the fire’s footprint expands."
Parts of the Prescott National Forest are closed to the public, as are several roads in the area. Smoke is expected today over nearby towns such as Camp Verde, Cottonwood, and Sedona.
The Yavapai County Sherriff’s Office will host a community meeting tonight at 6:30pm in person at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. It will also be streamed live on Facebook. A shelter has been set up at Yavapai College in Prescott, and large animals can be housed at the LASER Shelter in Prescott Valley.
Groom Creek is on SET status because of the Crooks Fire and residents should be prepared to evacuate. GO evacuation orders still apply to Walker Road south of Lynx Lake, Breezy Pines, Potato Patch, Kamp Kipa, Lookout Mountain, Mt. Tritle, and Mountain Pines Acres. For the most up to date information, follow the Yavapai County Sheriff Office’s Facebook page.
Fire info: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8067/
Evacuation info: www.facebook.com/yavapaicountysheriff.
Large animal shelter: https://laser-shelter.org
Pets: https://animaldisasterservices.com/
