Critical Fire Weather for Northern Arizona Today!

A trough of low pressure will bring gusty southwest winds to Northern Arizona today. Critical Fire Weather conditions are expected to develop across Northwest Arizona from the combination of gusty winds and low relative humidity.

A Red Flag Warning is in effect through 8 PM again today!

Dry and breezy weather will continue on Friday with Critical Fire Weather conditions possible for the weekend in much of Northern Arizona. A Fire Weather Watch is in effect.

Winds out of the southwest at 15 to 25 MPH with gusts up to 40 MPH.

Please exercise extreme caution with smoking, flamable tools, cooking equipment or combustable engines.  We want all of our residents and visitors to be safe during these Critical Fire Weather days.

Update – Fort Apache Indian Reservation Lightning Fires

Several fires were started yesterday due to lightning in the area.

Faught Ridge Fire: The fire should be fully contained today. The accurate acreage is 18.8 acres. The Gila Hotshots and Payson Helitack were released yesterday. Fire crews are in the mop up stage. The following resources are still on the fire: Engine 5262, Apache#1 short crew, Apache #2 short crew, Black Mesa Hotshots, Engine 5241, Water Tender-893.

Reservation Lake, Reservation Lake 2, and Cowboy Springs are fully contained.

Strong Winds blowing in today!

Wednesday, May 15th – A disturbance passing over Northern Arizona today will bring strengthening winds to the region. Areas from Flagstaff north and east may see winds 20 to 25 MPH with gusts reaching up to 40 MPH. A Red Flag Warning is in effect from 11 AM this morning to 8PM this evening for strong winds and low relative humidity for elevations below 6500 feet.

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring or are imminent!