9/18/16 1:26 PM
FULTON FIRE UPDATE 9/18/2016
Payson Ranger District: Andy Mandell, Incident Commander Central West Zone
Information Center: 928-474-7900
E-mail: fultonfireinfo@gmail.com
Location: 28 miles east of Payson, AZ
South of State Highway 260
Start Date: September 12, 2016
Cause: Lightening
Size: 175 acres
Total Personnel: 214
Resources:
• Crews: 4 hotshot crews – 1 Type II crew
• Helicopters: 1 Type 3
• Engines: 6 Engines
• Dozers: 2

Payson, AZ – Crews were well prepared for all events which occurred during Saturday’s operations. Black line construction continued along Highway 260 and the top of the Rim in conjunction with aerial ignitions. Increased fire activity was observed at lower elevations along the Rim face as fire dropped below mixed conifer fuels into primarily ponderosa pine. Some terrain driven spotting occurred within the Highway 260 corridor, prompting a brief highway closure which provided a safe zone for crews and aircraft to extinguish these spot fires. Crews worked through the night establishing additional black line along the top of the Rim.
APS released this news release last night: APS is working closely with the Forest Service to ensure the safety of first responders fighting the Fulton Fire near Payson. At approximately 8 a.m. today, APS will de-energize a power line in the area – allowing Forest Fire Managers and personnel on the ground to continue to battle the blaze without the added dangers of electricity. The planned outage will impact just over 900 customers in the community of Forest Lakes, and will be out until fire personnel have completed their work later that afternoon. APS customer associates are calling impacted residents to inform them of this outage. For more information on the status of the planned outage, visit aps.com/outage to view the APS Outage Map.
Sunday operations will continue to build on Saturday’s progress. Focus will be on powerline corridors. Arizona Public Service will be on site actively monitoring activities around the powerlines which pass through the fire zone.
Weather will remain the same through mid-day Monday. Moisture will begin moving back into the area late Monday with increasing chance of showers and thunderstorms Tuesday through Thursday.

9/17/16 – Payson Ranger District – Andy Mandell, Incident Commander Central West Zone
Information Center: 928-474-7900
E-mail: fultonfireinfo@gmail.com
Location: 28 miles east of Payson, AZ
South of State Highway 260
Start Date: September 12, 2016
Cause: Lightening
Size: 75 acres
Total Personnel: 216
Resources:
• Crews: 4 hotshot crews – 1 Type II crew
• Helicopters: 1 Type 3
• Engines: 5 Engines
• Dozers: 2

Payson, AZ – Friday operations went as planned. Crews completed black lining operations, from Highway 260 to east of the Visitor Center. Aerial ignitions were used to burn out resistant pockets within the fire. Crews observed excellent consumption of dead and down fuels with no tree torching and no canopy involvement. Smoke created less of an impact than anticipated and traffic was uninterrupted on Highway 260 with some delays. The fire is at two percent completion.

Night shifts began Friday evening, providing 24 hour monitoring on the fire line. Willow Springs and Woods Canyon Lakes will provide water resources as needed for the helicopters and engines. APS will be in the area actively monitoring the powerlines in the fire perimeter.

Weather will remain the same through Sunday. Moisture will begin moving back into the area on Monday, with increasing chances of showers and thunderstorms Tuesday through Thursday next week.

Crews will introduce fire off the rim again today. East of Fulton Point and west of forest road 512 just south of highway 260. Restricts to the right lane on Highway 260 will remain in place. If smoke increases along the highway a pilot car will escort traffic through the area. Crews will be working off the roadway along highway 260.

If you wish to be on our mailing list for updates or have questions please contact us at
fultonfireinfo@gmail.com. You may also join us on Facebook at Tonto National Forest – North Zone – Payson/Pleasant Valley Ranger District for pictures and daily updates.

9/16/16 7:52 am
Currently there are at least 2 fires that are visible from Heber/Overgaard and the smoke is extending all the way into town (light smoky smell in H-O but heavy smoke laying in Forest Lakes)
The Fulton Fire will greatly increase in size and smoke today as crews plan to begin back-burns to reinforce lines that have been put in place – Main values at risk are the Mogollon Rim Visitor’s Center and an APS distribution line. Both have protection measures employed. Back Burns are planned from the VIS today starting around 10:00 a.m. The Loner Fire is located approximately 1 mile south east of the Fulton Fire. It was putting up a fair amount of smoke yesterday as heavies were being consumed. From H-O the Fulton Fire and Loner fire look like one larger fire. This Fire is near a set of high KV powerlines and that is the only value at risk at this time.

The Sam Jim was putting up a good deal of smoke yesterday and could be easily seen from town. Smoke was laying down in patches all the way from Heber-Overgaard to the Rim yesterday afternoon. None of these fires are a risk or threat to communities but smoke will continue to be heavy through the weekend and into next week.

The Cat Fire is located off FR 122 at the edge of Wildcat Canyon, and I believe was about 30 acres yesterday.

The Oktoberfest is occurring in Overgaard this weekend. This is the second biggest event of the year in town so it will be busy.
ADOT is expecting traffic disturbances from the Fulton Fire due to heavy smoke. They may employ a pilot car through the smoke zone at times if necessary. Which will cause a significant delay along HWY 260 in the Woods Canyon Lake area.

Fulton Fire –
Forest Officials Announce Temporary Area Closure
For Fulton Fire Planning Area

PHOENIX, September 15, 2016 – For Immediate Release. The Tonto National Forest has established a temporary area closure over the Fulton Fire planning area located on the Payson and Pleasant Valley Ranger Districts due to wildland fire suppression operations.

The temporary area closure reduces the potential for National Forest visitors and the public to enter the Fulton Fire planning area while wildland fire suppression and emergency operations are taking place, ensuring public and firefighter safety.

Implementation of the temporary area closure will also protect firefighters and emergency responders throughout the course of the wildland fire incident management.

The Fulton Fire planning area will remain closed until October 31, 2016, or when wildland fire suppression operations have ceased and the temporary Area Closure Order is rescinded.

FULTON FIRE OVERVIEW / UPDATE
Start Date: September 12, 2016
Cause: Lightning
Location: Mogollon Rim, approximately 25 miles east of Payson, Arizona. Nearby communities include Forest Lakes Estates, Colcord Estates and Ponderosa Estates.
Current Size: Approximately 1 ½ acres

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Fuels: Ponderosa pine and mixed conifer
Incident Commander: William Dudley
Personnel: 165
Equipment/Resources: four hotshot crews; one Type 2 crew; five engines; two bulldozers; and one Type 3 helicopter.
Smoke: Medium to heavy
Summary: Eastbound State Route 260 between Christopher Creek and Forest Lakes will be reduced to one lane through September 25 due to smoke and to create a safer environment for firefighting efforts.
The Mogollon Rim Visitor Center on the Black Mesa Ranger District was closed beginning September 14 due to fire activity. Check the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests Web site — http://www.fs.usda.gov/asnf — for visitor center updates.