A wildfire began around 9 p.m. on the evening of Wednesday, June 26, on the Arizona Strip just outside of Kanab and Fredonia. Fire crews with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Arizona Strip District took point on the response, which also included Forest Service and Arizona State responses.
Photos courtesy of Bureau of Land Management.
The fire, which responders determined was caused by a lightning strike, was visible for miles around and burned over 200 acres before crews brought it into containment. The BLM reports the fire was 50 percent contained by Friday, June 28, and 100 percent contained by the weekend. According to a statement from the incident commander, as shared on the Inciweb incident report, fire lines held on the evenings of June 27 and 28, preventing major spread overnight.
Response to the fire included five engines of varying sizes, one dozer, two water tender trucks and one Helitack crew with overhead. Once the fire reached 100 percent containment over the weekend, crews entered the mop up phase and began disengaging assets from the response line. As of the morning of July 1, the fire was still in 100 percent containment status with a few crews and an engine continuing mop up and observation. Specific details are available on the BLM Arizona Strip office’s newsroom at blm.gov/office/arizona-strip-district-office under the incident title ‘Gunsight Fire.’
Fire managers thanked the public for their assistance in clearing the area and enabling crews easy access to the site. The fire coincides with the recent declaration of Fire Restriction Status in the area, reminding the public of the ease with which a small ignition can escalate into a wildfire.
