The Pocket Fire north of Sedona has surpassed 11,000 acres with 0% containment as of Monday morning.
Fire managers say most of that increase is not the result of new growth. Instead, they attribute it to a strategic burnout operation carried out overnight around Fernow Cabin on the fire's western flank.
A burnout is an intentional firefighting tactic used to remove vegetation ahead of an advancing wildfire, creating areas with little or no fuel left to burn.
Incident managers say the tactic is especially important because the Pocket Fire was spotting up to a mile ahead over the weekend.
“Using dozens of dozers, it would take months to build a fire line a mile across, and it would leave horrible scars on the landscape,” Coconino National Forest officials wrote in a social media post Monday. “A burnout will remove fuel from the same area much more quickly and with far less damage to the landscape.”
About 900 firefighters and support personnel are assigned to the incident as of Monday morning.
The greater Flagstaff communities of Kachina Village, Forest Highlands and Pine Del all remain in “set” status to be prepared to evacuate if needed.
A virtual public meeting will be livestreamed on the Coconino National Forest Facebook page at 7 p.m.
