May 18, 2012 @ 9:00 am
Size: Approximately 9,900 acres Containment: 5%
Cause: Human caused; originated from a structure fire on private property
Time/Date Started: Sunday, May 13 at 11:00 am
Location: Community of Crown King (T10N, R1W, S14)
Jurisdiction: Private property and the Prescott National Forest
Fuels: Ponderosa pine and chaparral
Values at Risk: Community of Crown King, the Horsethief Basin. Additional threats are posed to Forest Service campgrounds, lookout towers, communications sites, power lines and historic sites within the Forest.
Residences Destroyed: 4 Terrain: Steep, rugged, difficult access Resources: 8 Type-1 Crews, 8 Type-2 Crews, 18 Engines, 2 Dozers, 4 Type 1 Helicopters, 1 Type 2 Helicopter, 2 Type 3 Helicopters, Air Attack Total no. of personnel: 640 personnel from 14 states (AK, AZ, CA, FL, ID, IN, MS, MT, NJ, NM, NY, OR, TX, UT) Injuries to date: 4 Estimated Costs to Date: $2,788,553
An Evacuation Order remains in effect for the community of Crown King. Battle Flat is also under evacuation. The Communities of Pine Flats and Turkey Creek have been given a pre-evacuation advisory. For questions about Evacuations and Roadblocks, please contact the Yavapai County Sherriff’s Office at 928-713-2709.
The Red Cross Shelter/Evacuation Center at the Bradshaw Mountain High School has been closed. Red Cross will open a Reception and Care Center at Mayer Elementary School, 12606 E. Main St., Mayer, AZ on Friday May 18 at 10 a.m. and will remain open until 5 p.m. each day until further notice. Red Cross personnel can be reached at 928-237-6751.
A Red Flag warning due to strong winds from the southwest and low relative humidity has been issued today from 8 a.m. through 10 p.m. The fire is expected to grow primarily northward again today.
On the southwest flank of the fire, crews are using Bull Run Trail as a control feature in conjunction with the road network on the southwest flank, which will also be improved today for use as control lines and as a secondary egress.
Crews continue to create defensible space and construct contingency lines on the west flank of the fire to help keep fire north of Forest Road 92 and protect communication sites and the town of Crown King.
Ahead of the fire to the northwest, crews are starting structure protection and constructing fire lines for control actions as needed in the Pine Flats and Turkey Creek areas.
On the south and east side of the fire crews are holding the Cleator – Crown King Road (County Road 59) and working to suppress fire below the road to the east by utilizing helicopter bucket drops. Burnout operations may be conducted if necessary.
A Closure Order is in effect for all Prescott National Forest land south of County Road 177.
All roads leading into the community of Crown King are closed.
Cleator – Crown King Road (County Road 59) is closed at Cleator.
Senator Highway to Crown King (County Road 52) is closed at Goodwin.
Forest Road 192 is closed.
Forest Road 711 is closed at the southern boundary of the Forest.
A Yavapai County Sherriff’s Office Road Closure is also in effect for County Road 177, approximately 4 miles east of Pine Flats as of 6 a.m. on May 18, 2012.
A Yavapai County fire ban in effect across all fire ban zones. Prescott National Forest Campfire and Smoking Restrictions are also in effect. For AZ Fire Info & Restrictions Information call 1-877-864-6985 or visit http://wildlandfire.az.gov.
Expect smoke in the area. Smoke sensitive individuals in affected areas may need to take action to mitigate the conditions. Remaining indoors, using air conditioning or temporarily moving to an unaffected area may be necessary. Visibility is an excellent measure of air quality. If visibility is ten miles or more, the air quality is good. Visibility of six to nine miles indicates moderate air quality. Three to five miles of visibility indicates conditions unhealthy for sensitive groups. One and a half to two and a half miles, the air quality is unhealthy. One to one and a quarter miles indicates the air quality is very unhealthy. If visibility due to smoke is less than a mile, the air quality is hazardous. For more smoke information and air quality forecasts, visit http://www.azfireinfo.com/links.asp#Smoke.
The public can obtain fire information via the following:
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