Southwest winds will become strong by late morning with wind speeds decreasing in the evening around 7:00 pm. Wind speeds will increase from 20 to 30 MPH with gusts around 45 MPH. Saturday winds will develop again potentially gusting over 40 MPH inportions of east central and northeast Arizona. Driving may be hazardous to high profile vehicle and in areas prone to blowing dust.

∙ Be aware of and maintain safe distances from other vehicles near you, particularly RVs, campers, trucks, buses, or trailers being towed. These vehicles could swing out and hit your car in sudden wind gusts.

∙ Take extra care in a high-profile vehicle such as trucks, vans, SUVs, or when towing a trailer, as these are more prone to being pushed or flipped by high winds.

∙ Watch for objects that could potentially blow into the roadway. Tree limbs may break and/or other debris may come loose during strong winds.

∙ Listen to the radio for changes in weather conditions that could create more dangerous driving.

* If you pull over, make sure you are completely off of the road, take your foot off of the brake and turn your lights OFF to prevent other vehicles from following you and potentially hitting your vehicle

As of this morning the fire has not grown significantly and is at 106 acres.  Fire
crews are still on the fire, and there are no current concerns about threatened
structures, crews have a line around the fire.

SPRINGERVILLE  — Forest Service fire crews are battling a 100 acre wildfire called the “Whiting Fire” approximately four miles south of Highway 60, north of Whiting Knoll in Apache County.  As of 11:30 a.m., fire managers on scene said crews are making progress around the fire and have been building a fire line. There is no estimate of containment as of yet, but winds have not been as bad as feared so far, allowing firefighters to make progress. The fire was discovered last night (Oct. 28). The fire is burning in grass, pinon-juniper and fallen trees. The number of structures and out buildings threatened is being determined as well as the cause of the fire.