Officials are scrambling to gather resources as most firefighters are now battling fires in other areas of the state.
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The so-called Cedar Creek Fire was moving in a northerly direction in rugged terrain, burning brush and ponderosa pine and throwing up a huge plume of white smoke that could be seen for miles, according to Bureau of Indian Affairs officials. A pre-evacuation notice has been issued for the following areas: Show Low, Pinetop, Lakeside, Hondah, McNary and the White River Indian Reservation.
The Cedar Creek fire at Show Low, Arizona is nothing but the latest of an unfortunate streak of fires across the United States for the past few months.
“The higher relative humidity and moisture often associated with thunderstorms can cause fire behavior to be so minimal that smoke is not visible above tree tops until fire behavior picks up with wind, higher temperatures and dry weather patterns”.
The blaze is burning about a mile from designated locations where the possible spread of the fire would trigger evacuations less than 10 miles away.
If an evacuation is ordered, it would be a short notice so officials are urging people to be ready in case. No evacuations were ordered, but voluntary evacuations were recommended at one point Wednesday with a temporary shelter set up as a precaution at Reno High School.
Authorities in Utah say a firefighter has been injured battling wildfires in the southern part of the state. BIA officials have told The Independent the B65 Road is the trigger point for evacuation of Show Low, not just Forestdale.
Timber Mesa Fire Marshall Kirk Webb said the 911 emergency system is being overloaded with calls asking about the Cedar Creek Fire. An air tanker is on scene dropping fire retardant.
Navajo County spokesman Adam Wolfe says winds diminished overnight, helping firefighting efforts. They couldn’t immediately say how many buildings were destroyed or whether any were homes because crews haven’t been able to access the area. A 20-mile stretch of US 60 remained closed. If an evacuation is placed into effect, the evacuation routes will be via Highway 77 north toward Snowflake, Highway 260 west toward Heber or east toward Springerville depending on location, and Highway 60 east toward Springerville.
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Fire lines were holding Thursday in the fight against a wildfire threatening several communities with thousands of residents in east-central Arizona.
