Coconino National Forest spokeswoman Brienne Magee told NAZ Today that the smoke is from the Mountainaire Burn, which is a 500-acre prescribed burn south of Flagstaff near Mountainaire.  Only 150 acres were burned because of “ventilation concerns,” and crews decided to stop the burn. 

Fire conditions were determined to be good this morning, says Magee, but as conditions changed throughout the day, managers decided to shut down the burn.

Magee says that smoke will continue to drift north and east from the fire and cold weather overnight will allow for the smoke to continue to affect Flagstaff into the overnight hours.

Bob Urban from the Beaver Valley Fire Department works a hot spot on the line at the Schultz Fire burning north of Flagstaff, Ariz., Tuesday, June 22, 2010. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Jack Kurtz)

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — An estimated 1,000 people who were forced to flee their homes because of a forest fire outside Flagstaff were being allowed to return Wednesday morning.

Homeowners and their families began to trickle into the evacuated neighborhoods at 8 a.m. They had left their homes Sunday after the fire erupted just north of the northern Arizona city that is home to 60,000 people.

“We’re very glad,” said resident Lula Whitehair, 49. “When we saw that fire coming, we thought the worst.”

Crews had enough confidence in their fire lines to give the local sheriff the OK to lift the evacuation order, but he warned residents to be prepared to leave again if necessary.

The battle against the 22-square-mile Schultz fire was far from over. At least 10 miles of fire line still needed to be completed, and the blaze was just 20 percent contained. Crews Wednesday planned to secure and widen the line on the southern flank of the fire to keep it from surging back toward the city. Meanwhile, firefighters aided by air tankers and helicopters were trying to stop its growth to the north.

Efforts to fight the blaze will likely continue for at least two weeks, incident commander Dugger Hughes said late Tuesday.

“It’s going to be a long haul,” he said. “But it’s looking good.”

The fire’s southern edge is about five miles from Flagstaff.

Two heavy air tankers helped fight the blaze Tuesday, said fire spokesman Eric Neitzel. The tankers, part of 19 under contract through the U.S. Forest Service to fight fires across the country, are capable of carrying more than 2,000 gallons of fire retardant used to slow the spread of fire. Nearly 1,000 firefighters were battling the blaze.

Authorities said the fire was started by an abandoned campfire, and strong winds quickly fanned the flames. No major injuries have been reported and no structures have burned.

The blaze tore though stands of ponderosa pine that ring the city and rise up the slopes of nearby mountains. Conditions are dry, despite record amounts of snowfall in the area last winter.

Authorities said a campfire also was to blame for a smaller fire in southeast Flagstaff. Campfires will be prohibited in three Arizona forests starting Wednesday.

The southeast Flagstaff fire was 80 percent contained Tuesday afternoon, and a third fire 11 miles northeast of Williams was expected to be fully contained Wednesday.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer toured the fire area Tuesday. Earlier in the day, she spoke with President Barack Obama, who assured her of the federal government’s continued support in firefighting efforts. Two requests from the state for federal fire management assistance funds have been granted.

___

Associated Press Writer Felicia Fonseca contributed to this report.

DPS and ADOT officials closed US 89 for the second straight day on Monday. (Brandon Neuman/NAZ Today)

TUESDAY’S LATEST UPDATE HERE

FLAGSTAFF (NAZ Today)– Despite high winds and grounded air tankers, firefighters were able to gain some containment on the Schultz Fire.

The Schultz Fire has been holding at 10,000 acres for most of the afternoon, and containment is now at 10 percent. Windy conditions and low visibility, along with the amount of fire traffic driving in the area, prompted officials to ask DPS and ADOT to close US 89 for the duration of the day following intermittent closures throughout the morning and early afternoon.

The fire is human caused, likely from an abandoned campfire. In a meeting with evacuated residents Monday night at Coconino High School, Coconino County Sheriff Bill Pribil asked for the public’s help in locating anyone who may have been camping or in the area when the fire started.  The Sheriff’s Office and Forest Service are advising people with information to call the Coconino National Forest’s Supervisor’s Office with their tips at 928-527-3600.

New fire restrictions will go into effect at 8 am Wednesday morning in the Coconino, Prescott, and Kaibab National Forests.  Campfires, charcoal, and coal or wood stoves will be restricted to developed campgrounds only, and smoking will only be allowed inside of inclosed vehicles and buildings, along with inside of developed campgrounds. However, the Forest Service says that pressurized liquid or gas stoves, lanterns, and heaters meeting safety specifications will continue to be allowed in these area.

Incident Commander Dugger Hughes told residents during the meeting that they will have to deal with smoke for the foreseeable future.  ”I’m sorry, there’s just nothing I can do about it,” he said to the audience.

800 firefighters are currently battling the fire.  756 buildings have been evacuated.  Overnight, crews will conduct burnouts and reinforce dozer lines on the south side of the fire.

Evacuees continue to be housed at the Mount Elden Middle School evacuation shelter.

Firefighters confer on the front line of the Eagle Rock Fire Thursday afternoon (Chad Black/APSN.us)

WILLIAMS (NAZ Today, 12:00 PM)– Thanks to some major progress overnight, most evacuees have been allowed to return to their homes in the Spring Valley area.

Firefighters made significant progress putting out hot spots and strengthening fire line last night, according to Public Information Officer Brienne Magee in a media release.

3,415 acres have burned so far, and fire crews are still listing containment at 30 percent.  Today’s weather will be similar to Thursday’s, with temperatures hovering near 80 degrees with low humidity and breezy southwesterly winds.  The Kaibab National Forest says that firefighters will be focusing on the southwest flank of the fire, which is in difficult terrain.

County Road 141 remains closed between mile 8 and mile 10. Some homeowners will have to wait to return to their homes until crews mop up in certain areas, according to Magee.  Forest Service officials say that residents returning home should use SR 64 or Spring Valley Road.  Power has been restored to most of the homes.  Firefighters are still providing structure protection in Spring Valley as a precaution.

A public meeting will be held tonight at the Maine Consolidated School in Parks starting at 6 pm.  Incident Commander John Philbin will be at the meeting to answer questions.

Stick with NAZ Today.com for the latest on the Eagle Rock Fire.

Thursday’s Recap HERE

WILLIAMS (NAZ Today, 9:45 PM)– A rapidly-spreading wildfire has forced 50 people to evacuate from their homes northeast of Williams.

Smoke from the Eagle Rock Fire over the San Francisco Peaks, as seen from Meteor Crater near Winslow (Photo: Patrick Walker/NAZ Today)

The Kaibab National Forest is reporting that the Eagle Rock Fire  scorched 1,000 acres on Wednesday.  Sustained southwest winds of 25 miles per hour with gusts to 55 mph prevented air tankers from fighting the fire, although helicopters were active throughout the day.

250 firefighters are fighting the fire as of 9 pm, and they will continue to fight the fire overnight.  The Northern Arizona Type-2 Incident Management Team will take over management of the fire starting Thursday morning, according to  Kaibab National Forest officials.

KNF Fire Information Officer Punky Moore said in a release that the fire spread rapidly during the day Wednesday and firefighters had to keep up with the fire spotting, meaning embers blown ahead of the main blaze were starting small fires, helping it to grow.

Coconino County Sheriff’s Office deputies and volunteers went door-to-door issuing evacuation orders to Spring Valley residences located between Forest Service Rd 76 and County Rd 141, near the junction with County Rd 144.  Around 50 people ended up evacuating, according to Moore.

3:30 PM cell phone picture from I-40 in Williams (Courtesy: Donia Gillespie)

Four air tankers are on order to help fight the fire when the winds in the area die down.

The cause of the blaze is listed as unknown as Wednesday evening.

Forecasters are expecting the winds to be much lighter for Thursday.

The fire was first spotted and reported by the Kendrick Mountain fire lookout tower late this morning.

Stick with NAZToday.com for continuing coverage of the Eagle Rock Fire.

WILLIAMS (NAZ Today)– The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office is evacuating residents  ahead of the Eagle Rock Fire.

CCSO Spokesman Gerry Blair says that deputies and volunteers are going door-to-door to residences located between Forest Service Rd 76 and County Rd 141, near the junction with County Rd 144, issuing evacuation orders.   Residents are being asked to report to the Maine Consolidated School in Parks to check in with authorities, so that authorities can be accounted for them.

The American Red Cross says it is setting up a shelter and reception center at the Maine Consolidated School, which will open at 7 pm.

The 89 Mesa Fire was reported at around noon Thursday. (Photo: Chad Black/APSN.us)

FLAGSTAFF (NAZ Today)– 8 PM MST– Firefighters are trying to get a handle on a 550+ acre wildfire burning nine miles northeast of Flagstaff.

Fire crews responded to a reported 25-acre wildfire fueled by high winds at around noon Thursday.  The Coconino National Forest requested a Type-1 firefighting helicopter upon arrival to help with fighting the fire.  As of 1 pm, the 89 Mesa Fire had grown to about 100 acres, fueled by 30-35 mile per hour sustained winds.

By 3 pm, winds helped a spot fire start on the east side of US 89, but fire crews were able to put that fire out after it burned around 30 acres. The fire had grown to 150 acres by this point, and a Type-2 incident management team was requested to help manage the fire.

The 89 Mesa Fire is burning 7 miles north of Flagstaff. (Photo: Chad Black/APSN)

The National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for winds and dangerous fire conditions that was in effect until 7 pm.  Wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour were anticipated throughout the day and into the evening hours.

Coconino National Forest and Summit Fire Department crews are on scene fighting the blaze.  Two hot shot crews and over 150 firefighters were working on the fire by nightfall, according various reports from crews in the field.

DPS officers turn around motorists on US 89. The highway was closed for some time Thursday afternoon due to fire burning on both sides of the road. (Photo: Chad Black/APSN.us)

By 5 pm, the 89 Mesa Fire had grown to 300 acres.  Firefighters still had not established any containment on the wildfire.  Coconino National Forest Spokesperson Brady Smith described the fire as a “wind-driven surface fire.”

Currently, the fire is listed at 550 acres.  Forest Service Spokesperson Brienne Magee says that the fire has slowed down tonight as winds have subsided. The fire is 0% contained, and a Type-2 incident management team will take over managing the fire at 6 am.

A USFS dozer moving into action on FR 420. (Courtesy: Brienne Magee/USFS Coconino National Forest)

US 89 reopened shortly after 6pm, but is restricted to one lane in each direction. Magee says that the fire is human caused, but the details are under investigation.

Summit Fire Department firefighters are standing by in the Wupatki Estates neighborhood in case homes become endangered again as the fire grows.  Power lines in the area are also threatened.  No evacuations have been ordered at this time.

Stay with NAZToday.com for the latest on this developing wildfire.

About a dozen people attended a meeting Thursday in Prescott to hear about the Forest Service’s proposal to thin out overcrowded trees and brush on 55,000 acres surrounding the southern boundary of Prescott over the next decade or more.

Federal officials plan to use a combination of fire, timber sales, brush crushing, goats and chain saws to accomplish their goal.

Over the past decade, Prescott Forest officials have thinned out trees and brush on about 21,600 acres.

Several speakers praised the Forest Service for its efforts to protect Prescott and surrounding areas from catastrophic wildfires.

“I’d rather smell smoke from a controlled burn than from my house,” said local resident Billy Fields.

“The wildlife I’m seeing is just unreal since the burning has been going on the last four or five years,” Fields said.

Bradshaw District Ranger Laura Jo West said the effort to keep the forest healthy through proper tree and brush removal is a never-ending project.

“We’re going to be in there a lot if we’re going to maintain these systems,” she said. “Fire and thinning are going to be part of life here.”

Prescott Wildland/Urban Interface Commission citizen member Everett Warnock said the public is starting to understand the goals of good forest management.

“There is so much evidence that the public is starting to understand we can manage our forest,” Warnock said.

Warnock noted the region now has eight “Firewise Communities” that have earned that designation from the national Firewise program.

Recently, the forest received $1.6 million in federal stimulus money for mechanical brush-crushing operations on 6,000 acres of chaparral-choked forest around Prescott and Cherry starting this summer.

It got the money because projects were ready to go, and private companies will do the work.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.

The remains of the trailer and a Summit Fire Dept. engine that responded to the fire caused by faulty wiring. (Photo: Chad Black/APSN)

DONEY PARK (NAZ Today) – A small fire in Doney Park destroyed a small camping trailer early this afternoon.

When Summit Fire Department responded to the fire, flames were engulfing the trailer. The blaze was quickly extinguished and did not spread to nearby property.

Cause of the fire is blamed on faulty wiring in the trailer.

This is the second fire in the Doney Park area in the last week. The other fire, contained to an attic of a small house, is still under investigation.

Related: House Fire, Heavy Smoke in Doney Park

Information from APSN.

Firefighters start to extinguish the blaze on Edith Drive earlier this afternoon. (Photo: Chad Black/APSN)

DONEY PARK (NAZ Today) – Flames erupted in Doney Park this afternoon when an unoccupied house caught fire around 2:35 p.m.

Summit Fire Department reported to the scene with three fire engines and eventually received additional assistance from the Flagstaff Fire Department with an extra engine and battalion chief.

The fire was contained to the attic of the residence.

“Access to the attic for this fire was definitely tough,” said Fernando Hernandez of Summit Fire. Crews accessed the attic through ventilation holes and from the roof.

Cause of the fire is currently under investigation. “It could be a number of things; electrical, gas. There are a lot of things in attics that could catch fire,” said Hernandez.

Reports say there were cats in the home at the time of the fire that have yet to be located.

—

Additional photos:

Smoke rises from a roof covered with compressed air foam. (Photo: Chad Black/APSN)

A firefighter exits the main floor of the house. (Photo: Brandon Neuman/NAZ Today)

Fire crews gear up in preperation to enter the home. (Photo: Brandon Neuman/NAZ Today)