As smoke from the Pocket Fire blankets much of Flagstaff, a spokesperson for the team assigned to it says high winds, low humidity and challenging topography promise to make Sunday another “hectic” day.
The fire nearly doubled in size Saturday and advanced toward the greater Flagstaff communities of Kachina Village, Forest Highlands and Pine Del, which have all been placed in “Set” status. As of Sunday morning, it is still 0% contained.
“You can see a big, long finger [of the fire] going to the north, that was about a two-to-three mile run yesterday, wind driven, and we expect those similar winds today,” says Dick Fleishman, an information officer with the Southwest Area Incident Management Team 2. “Last night, our crews were able to get up on top and actually start doing some firing operations, remove fuels ahead of the fire, but we expect that very similar kind of wind to actually push those lines again today.”
There is one bright spot, Fleishman says: As the Pocket Fire makes its way north, it enters flatter terrain with more road systems, which will give the crews battling it much better access.
He tells KNAU the “Set” notice for Kachina Village, Forest Highlands and Pine Del is a precautionary tool given the likely direction of wind on Sunday.
“If it goes much further … we'll recommend to the county sheriff’s perhaps a different action, but at this point we can keep it where it's at,” he says. “At least for today, we're okay, but it's a very, very windy day, and we expect very similar fire behavior as yesterday.”
The residents of Kachina Village, Forest Highlands and Pine Del need to be paying attention to any official notices, he says. They should also have go bags ready and work on removing pine needles off roofs and gutters.
“Most fires or homes burn down in fires from ember wash,” Fleishman explains. “If we get a spot three-quarters-a-mile ahead, it's not a flaming front that's going to start your house on fire, it's going to be [an] ember, so people need to be cleaning. There's a lot of pine needles in Kachina and Forest Highlands, so clean those roofs, clean those around your house.”
On Sunday, firefighters are doing structure protection work in and around those communities, he says, looking at creating fire lines and removing fuels there.
The Pocket Fire now has three fronts that officials plan to battle it at: At the bottom of Bear Sign Canyon below the Mogollon Rim, on the flats north of West Fork and in the Seven Canyons area of Oak Creek Canyon.
“Oak Creek is not out of the woods yet, so we've got ready to engage the fire if it actually gets over into Oak Creek, and we still have forces down in [the] Seven Canyons area,” Fleishman says. “This is a fire that could go a lot of different directions in a big hurry, but predominantly it's going to — just because of the winds — it's going to spread … from the southwest to the northeast.”
Topography and Red Flag weather conditions have made this fire unusually complex and difficult to contain, he says.
“It's just the topography on this thing has been so challenging, and now you look at – we've got three potential fronts that we have to spread our resources across. It’s a challenge, that's for sure.”
Fleishman’s incident management team plans to hold a public meeting about the fire on Monday at 7 p.m. at the Sedona Red Rock Middle and High School. The meeting will be livestreamed on the Coconino National Forest’s Facebook page.
The cause of the Pocket Fire is still unknown, he says, because firefighters have yet to access the “heel” of the fire.
Other wildfires pop up near Flagstaff
This weekend, fire officials had more on their plate than just the Pocket Fire.
As of Sunday morning, the Spring Fire near Pumpkin Center and the Kendrick Mountain Wilderness reached 112 acres, but crews stopped forward progress on Saturday and containment lines held overnight.
However, it is still 0% contained. Pumpkin Center and the Kendrick Mountain Wilderness areas were placed in “Go” status before being downgraded back to "Set" on Sunday.
The fire was started by humans, but the exact cause is still under investigation, according to a Facebook post from the state Department of Forestry and Fire Management.
Butte Fire
The Kaibab National Forest says in a Facebook post that the 255-acre Butte Fire near Red Butte has slowed and reduced in intensity. It is at 10% containment and was caused by lightning.
This fire has entered the area burned by the 2014 McRae Fire, officials say, giving firefighters the chance to establish dozer lines.
