2020 Arizona wildfires

The 2020 Arizona wildfire season is the series of wildfires across the state of Arizona that occur year-round but are most numerous and typically burn the largest swaths of land during spring and summer. Peak fire season in the Southwest typically runs from May, when conditions are windy, hot, and dry, through mid-July, when the North American Monsoon provides the region with precipitation to slow fire activity.[1]

2020 Arizona wildfires
Map of fires during the 2020 Arizona wildfire season
Statistics
Costunknown
Deaths0
Non-fatal injuries0
Season
← 2019
2021 →

As of June 15, 2020, at least thirteen fires larger than 1,000 acres (400 ha) have burned within the state. However, the most notable fire of the season, the Ocotillo Fire, burned only 980 acres (400 ha) over four days and threatened the town of Cave Creek. It destroyed 20 buildings, including 8 homes.[2]

Early outlook

In April, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management expected a "potentially active" fire season reminiscent of the 2019 season. Increased grass load from a wet winter is expected to contribute to an elevated risk of fire in the Central Arizona deserts.[3] Southwest Coordination Center Predictive Services forecasted an Above Normal risk for significant wildland fires from May through July for most of Arizona (excepting the Colorado Plateau), with fire potential returning to Normal by August with the arrival of a climatologically average monsoon. They cited above normal fine fuel loading in southern Arizona deserts and an active weather pattern through mid-June to support this risk.[4]

Wildfires

The following is a list of fires that burned more than 1,000 acres (400 ha), or produced significant structural damage or casualties.

Name County Acres Start date Containment date Notes Ref
BasinMohave38,804May 10May 21Lightning-caused[5][6]
East DesertMaricopa1,492May 17May 22Human-caused[7]
JackrabbitMaricopa2,034May 25May 26[8]
RangePinal3,286May 29June 1Cause unknown[9]
OcotilloMaricopa980May 30June 2Human-caused; 20 buildings destroyed in Cave Creek[2]
SawtoothPinal24,729May 30June 19Lightning-caused[10]
SunsetYavapai4,000May 31June 1Forced closure of I-17 both directions on May 31; cause unknown[11]
TortolitaPinal3,140June 5June 11Lightning-caused[12]
BighornPima88,046June 540% contained as of June 26Lightning-caused; around 80 homes in Catalina were forced to evacuate on June 12
Summerhaven and surrounding areas on Mt. Lemmon were given evacuation notice on June 16.
The Willow Canyon region of Mt. Lemmon and some parts of Oracle were told to evacuate on June 18
Further evacuations were announced for the eastern slopes of the Santa Catalinas on June 26		[13][14]
Blue RiverGila30,400June 585% contained as of June 18Lightning-caused[15]
EmigrantCochise4,756June 6June 14[16]
Dry LakeGraham4,266June 693% contained as of June 18Lightning-caused[17]
BringhamGreenlee22,903June 637% contained as of June 2536-mile closure of US 191; lightning-caused[18]
MangumCoconino71,420June 846% contained as of June 26Closure of US 89A and SR 67, making the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park inaccessible
Evacuations were issued for areas along House Rock Road east of Jacob Lake on June 17		[19]
BushMaricopa190,269June 1390% contained as of June 26Human-caused; Evacuations issued for: Tonto Basin, Punkin Center (June 14),
Sunflower, Apache Lake (June 16)
Brownsville, Jake's Corner, Slate Creek, and Pioneer Pass (June 18)
Gila County evacuation orders were lifted on June 20		[20]
CentralMaricopa4,499June 2080% contained as of June 26Human-caused[21][22]
AquilaMaricopa893June 23June 266 structures destroyed; human-caused[23][24]

See also

References
  1. "Fire Behavior Field Reference Guide, PMS 437 - Fire Season Climatology". nwcg.gov. National Wildfire Coordinating Group. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  2. "Ocotillo Fire destroys iconic Cave Creek business, 8 homes". AZ Family. June 2, 2020.
  3. "2020 Arizona Wildfire Outlook". dffm.az.gov. Department of Forestry and Fire Management. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  4. "2020 Fire Season Considerations and Outlook". Southwest Coordination Center. May 5, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  5. "Basin Fire burns 36,000 acres in northwest Arizona". Wildfire Today. May 11, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  6. "Basin Fire Information". InciWeb. May 21, 2020. Archived from the original on June 8, 2020.
  7. "East Desert Fire Information". InciWeb. May 25, 2020. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020.
  8. Wegner, Helena (May 26, 2020). "Jackrabbit Fire near Wickenburg grows to more than 2,000 acres". The Arizona Republic.
  9. "Range Fire Information". InciWeb. June 1, 2020. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020.
  10. "Sawtooth Fire Information". InciWeb. June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  11. "Sunset Fire closes Interstate 17 north of Phoenix". Wildfire Today. May 31, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  12. "AZ Dept. of Forestry & Fire Management: Tortolita Fire 100% contained". KVOA - News 4 Tucson. June 11, 2020.
  13. "Bighorn Information". InciWeb. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  14. "Arizona Wildfire Closes North Rim of Grand Canyon; In Southern Arizona, Bighorn Wildfire Continues To Grow". The Weather Channel. June 12, 2020.
  15. "Blue River Fire Information". InciWeb. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  16. "Open Incidents - WildCAD AZ-Tucson Interagency Dispatch Center". WildWeb. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020.
  17. "Dry Lake Fire Information". InciWeb. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  18. "Bringham Fire Information". InciWeb. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  19. "Mangum Fire Information". InciWeb. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  20. "Bush Fire Information". InciWeb. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  21. "Central Fire burning near New River grows to 1,500 acres". AZ Family. June 20, 2020.
  22. "Central Fire Information". InciWeb. June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  23. "Open Incidents - WildCAD Arizona Dispatch Center". WildWeb. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  24. "Aquila Fire Information". InciWeb. June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.