Several suspicious wildfires broke out early this morning in the vacinity of Flagstaff



From the Flagstaff Fire Dept:

This morning, at 3:21 am, Flagstaff Fire Engine 3 responded to the report of a fire off old East Route 66. Once on scene, firefighters found an approximate 1/4 acre fire burning on the ground. Engine 3 requested a water tender and an additional wildland unit to respond as well. Once the fire was controlled, crew members noticed 2 additional fires burning in the general vicinity on both the north and south side of Rt. 66. All crews on the scene of the first fire relocated to the closer of the two fires and called dispatched to send more wildland units and a battalion chief to handle the 3rd fire.
The second fire was burning near private property in rugged terrain but crews on the scene quickly gained control by digging lines around the fire and using hose lines. Battalion 1 arrived on the scene of the third fire and found it to be 2 to 3 acres in size. To make things even crazier, one of the incoming wildland units from Flagstaff Fire heading to the third fire spotted a 4th fire before making it on the scene and quickly rerouted to that fire. Mutual aid requests were called for Summit Fire and Medical and Highlands Fire for an additional wildland unit and engines to run calls in the city. Just before 7 am, multiple crews from the U.S Forest Service respond to the fires and took command of the incident. As of now, crews from Summit Fire and Flagstaff Fire have been released from the scene. The incident is still ongoing and crews will remain on scene until the fires are extinguished. Smoke will be visible in the area of Interstate 40, near mile marker 203. The cause of the fires is unknown at this time.
We would like to thank all agencies that helped with this morning’s wild event. Crews did an amazing job managing 4 different fires and keeping them from spreading further. Remember, we are currently in stage 1 fire restrictions. Stay safe Flagstaff.

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