The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office has lifted several evacuation orders for areas affected by the Pipeline and Haywire fires. Crater Estates, Moon Crater West, Alpine Ranchos and private property along U.S. Highway 89 north from Wupatki Trails to Sacred Mountain Trading Post have been downgraded from Go to Set status.
East Alpine Ranchos and Highway 89 north from Sacred Mountain Trading are now in ready status.
The Coconino National Forest throughout much of the area remains under a temporary closure because of the fires along with Forest Road 545 through Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.
Crews continue to make progress in containing both wildfires and officials say residential areas are no longer threatened.
In addition, wet weather in the forecast is expected to assist with firefighting efforts. Some areas near the Haywire Fire and Sunset Crater remain under Go evacuation orders.
Firefighters on the Pipeline Fire now say they’ve contained half of the blaze that began more than a week ago. It’s grown to more than 26,5000 acres and officials have reported little growth in recent days.
Crews have bolstered containment of the wildfire along its northern edge near U.S. Highway 89 as well as its southern perimeter near Schultz Pass and its western side near the Timberline area.
According to officials, rain over the weekend brought a quarter-inch of precipitation to some areas of the fire along with cooler temperatures, but red flag conditions yesterday coupled with warmer temperatures led to lower humidity.
Helicopters today continued to make water drops on hotspots and firefighting has been difficult on the fire’s western edge from Fremont Peak to Lockett Meadow because of the steep terrain.
Crews are also using natural barriers to keep the fire from moving west toward Snowbowl Road. About 750 personnel are involved in the firefighting effort.
The Haywire Fire, meanwhile, is now 40% contained as it’s reached more than 5,500 acres. Officials say crews continue to work toward further containment by improving existing fire lines.