Bureau of Land Management Firefighters work to contain the Tenderfoot Fire that broke out near Yarnell, Arizona, June 8, 2016. Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputies went door to door at about 30 homes and told people to head north out of town. Authorities ordered additional evacuations Thursday, including homes in the Peeples Valley Area, as they feared the fire might make its way down to Highway 89.
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Fire fighters and one fire engine from the Town of Congress and two engines from Yarnell are now working the fire on the ground.
The Tonto National Forest imposed fire restrictions on Wednesday banning fires anywhere in the 4,400-square-mile forest except in a list of developed campgrounds with metal fire rings.
Yarnell resident Shannon Smith, who lost her home in the 2013 fire, was one of the few on her street who decided not to follow mandatory evacuations this time around after seeing the fire was at least a mile away.
Fire officials said the blaze appears to be moving away from town and give credit to fire breaks that were built after the tragedy three years ago. Highway 89 has been closed in both directions in Yarnell since Wednesday.
Incident Commander Alan Sinclair said he would meet with the fire planners and local officials to discuss allowing people who have been evacuated from Yarnell back to their homes. “So, we’re feeling good about a little bit of a buffer here”. She was packing up and preparing to evacuate.
A shelter has been opened up at Yavapai College, which according to the Daily Courier was expecting up to 200 people to stay the night.
Officials say there is no threat to the town, but crews continue to monitor the situation.
Dolores Garcia, a spokeswoman for the Bureau of Land Management, said there was no lightning in the Yarnell area Wednesday and the cause of the fire was under investigation. Several aircraft, including a helicopter and a large jet, are dropping water on the flames.
No injuries have been reported so far.
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The brush fire comes almost three years since the Yarnell Hill Fire took the lives of the 19 Granite Mountain hotshots.
