Acres: 17,126 acres Percent Containment: 0%  

Start Date: June 16, 2021                                                               Cause: Lightning 

Origin Location: Approximately 12 miles west of Pine and Strawberry, Arizona  

Fuels: Pinyon Juniper, Chaparral, Brush, Grass, Cactus  

Personnel Assigned: 95 

Aircraft Effective in Reducing Fires Growth to the East 

Virtual Community Meeting Tonight at 7:30 p.m. on the Incident Facebook Page  

The Southwest Area Type 1 Incident Management Team, led by Incident Commander Alan Sinclair, assumed command of the Backbone Fire, this morning, Saturday, June 19, 2021.  Firefighters are fully suppressing the Backbone Fire to protect nearby communities and values at risk in the area. 

This afternoon two Very Large Air Tankers (VLAT), three Large Air Tankers (LAT), and two Super Scoopers were utilized and effective in reducing the fire’s growth to the north and east allowing time to prepare a control protection line for the protection of Strawberry and Pine.  Extreme heat and low humidity are expected through Sunday causing extreme fire conditions.  Firefighters continue to scout for containment locations on the east side of the Verde River north to State Route 260; south along State Route 260 from FS Road 500 towards State Route 87 near the communities of Strawberry and Pine for possible future burnout operations.      

APS is working closely with the agencies responding to the Backbone Fire. While we don’t currently anticipate a disruption in service, we are monitoring the fire’s progress in the event there is a need to take power lines out of service to protect firefighters and/or the fire or smoke impacts to electrical infrastructure. Customers can visit aps.com/outagecenter for information on how to be prepared for an outage and to view the APS outage map.  

Weather: Excessive temperatures and single digit humidity will continue for the next several days, with a chance of afternoon dry thunderstorms producing gusty winds from the north which will lead to extreme fire behavior.  

Evacuations: Evacuation orders were issued yesterday for the communities of Pine and Strawberry. Residents and visitors should contact their county or visit https://ein.az.gov/ready-set-go for information regarding evacuation status.     

Closures: State Route 260 is closed between Camp Verde and State Route 87. Motorists are advised to visit at:  https://www.az511.com current road closures before traveling.  

The Fossil Creek recreation area is closed due to wildfire danger, which includes Waterfall Trail, Irving/Flume, Tonto Bench, Fossil Creek Bridge, Homestead, Sally May, Purple Mountain, and Mazatzal. Closures and other changes to recreation site status are available on the Coconino NF webpage at:  https://www.fs.usda.gov/recmain/coconino/recreation 

No Drone Zone:  A temporary flight restriction remains in place over the Backbone Fire. Flying a hobbyist drone over a fire puts everyone at risk and hinders firefighting suppression efforts. If you fly, we must ground all aircraft, due to the dangers unauthorized drones pose to firefighting aircraft. Always follow FAA rules when flying your aircraft. If caught, your drone could be confiscated by law enforcement and you could face hefty fines.  

Fire Danger Remains High.  All State Trust Land, Prescott, Tonto and Coconino National Forests are under Stage II Fire Restrictions.  Please use caution when recreating or working outdoors. Check for fire restrictions or information on fire activity around Arizona at: https://wildlandfire.az.gov/ 

Backbone Fire Information  

• Phone: (928) 362-4088  

• Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7545/  

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BackboneFireInfo/ 

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/backbone_fire  

 There will be a Facebook Live virtual community meeting for the Backbone Fire at 7:30 p.m. tonight at https://www.facebook.com/BackboneFireInfo 

Backbone Fire Evacuation Shelter Information

Red Cross Shelter - Rim Country Middle School, 304 S. Meadow Street, Payson

Large Animals/Livestock Shelter - Payson Event Center, 1400 S. Beeline, Payson
 

                                                                  Backbone Fire Morning Update June 19, 2021

Acres: 17,126 acres                                                                                         Percent Containment: 0%           

Start Date: June 16, 2021                                                                       Cause: Lightening

Origin Location: Approximately 12 miles west of Pine and Strawberry, Arizona

Fuels: Pinyon Juniper, Chaparral, Brush, Grass, Cactus

Personnel Assigned: 95

                                        Virtual Community Meeting Tonight at 7:30 p.m. on the Incident Facebook Page  

The Southwest Area Type 1 Incident Management Team, led by Incident Commander Alan Sinclair, assumed command of the Backbone Fire, this morning, Saturday, June 19, 2021.  Firefighters are fully suppressing the Backbone Fire to protect nearby communities and values at risk in the area.

Extreme heat and fire conditions caused the Backbone Fire to burn rapidly to the north and east greatly increasing acreage.  Rough terrain and limited road access are creating challenges for firefighters which includes one Hotshot crew, one hand crew, one fuels module, three helicopters and miscellaneous overhead.  Firefighters have begun to scout for containment locations south along State Route 260 from FS Road 500 towards State Route 87 near the communities of Strawberry and Pine for future burnout operations.  Aerial resources will continue to be utilized extensively to support firefighters on the ground as weather conditions allow. 

While there is electrical infrastructure in the area of the fire, APS does not anticipate a loss of service. However, APS may take lines out of service if needed to protect firefighters working on the fire. Nearby residents can visit the APS website or contact APS for outage information.

Weather: Excessive temperatures and single digit humidity will continue for the next several days, with a chance of afternoon dry thunderstorms producing gusty winds from the north which will lead to extreme fire behavior.

Evacuations: Evacuation orders were issued yesterday for the communities of Pine and Strawberry. Residents and visitors should contact their county or subscribe to emergency alerts for information regarding evacuation status.   

Closures: State Route 260 is closed between Camp Verde and State Route 87. Motorists are advised to visit AZ511 for current road closures before traveling.

The Fossil Creek recreation area is closed due to wildfire danger, which includes Waterfall Trail, Irving/Flume, Tonto Bench, Fossil Creek Bridge, Homestead, Sally May, Purple Mountain, and Mazatzal. Closures and other changes to recreation site status will be made available on the recreation page of the Coconino National Forest's website.

No Drone Zone:  A temporary flight restriction remains in place over the Backbone Fire. Flying a hobbyist drone over a fire puts everyone at risk and hinders firefighting suppression efforts. If you fly, we must ground all aircraft, due to the dangers unauthorized drones pose to firefighting aircraft. Always follow FAA rules when flying your aircraft. If caught, your drone could be confiscated by law enforcement and you could face hefty fines.

Fire Danger Remains High. Use caution when recreating or working outdoors. Check for fire restrictions or information on fire activity around Arizona at: https://wildlandfire.az.gov/

Backbone Fire Information

• Phone: (928) 362-4088

• Inciweb:  https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7545/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BackboneFireInfo/

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/backbone_fire

CAMP VERDE, Ariz., June 18, 2021 — Evacuation orders have been issued in communities surrounding the 6,000-acre Backbone Fire, which originated approximately 12 miles west of Pine and Strawberry, and 15 miles southeast of Camp Verde. The fire has moved across Fossil Creek with 0 percent containment. Hot, dry and windy weather conditions have led to extreme fire behavior. Evacuation orders are in place for residents and visitors of nearby areas such as Strawberry and Pine. Residents and visitors should contact their county or subscribe to emergency alerts for information regarding evacuation status. State Route 260 is closed between Camp Verde and State Route 87. Motorists can contact the Arizona Department of Transportation or visit AZ511 for updates on road closures and traffic. While there is electrical infrastructure in the area of the fire, APS does not anticipate a loss of service. However, APS may take lines out of service if needed to protect firefighters working on the fire. Nearby residents can visit the APS website or contact APS for outage information. Rough and rocky terrain coupled with limited area access and extreme heat are creating challenges for the roughly 100 personnel assigned to the fire, which includes one Hotshot crew, one hand crew, one fuels module, three helicopters and miscellaneous overhead. The fire is currently 0 percent contained and more resources have been requested. The Fossil Creek recreation area will be closed due to wildfire danger, which includes Waterfall Trail, Irving/Flume, Tonto Bench, Fossil Creek Bridge, Homestead, Sally May, Purple Mountain, and Mazatzal. Closures and other changes to recreation site status will be made available on the recreation page of the Coconino National Forest's website. The lightning-caused fire was first reported 11:30 p.m. June 16.
Details about the Backbone Fire will be posted on InciWeb as well as Facebook and Twitter.
BACKBONE FIRE OVERVIEW:

• Containment: 0 percent.
• Reported: 11:30 p.m. June 16.
• Cause: Lightning
• Origin location: Approximately 12 miles west of Pine and Strawberry.
• Current size: 6,000 acres.
• Fuel types: Pinyon juniper, chaparral, brush, grass, cactus.
• Current resources: One Hotshot crew, one hand crew, a fuels module and three helicopters. Total personnel: roughly 100.

  BACKBONE FIRE ADVISORY - "GO" STATUS FOR BOTH HUNTS RANCH AND STRAWBERRY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: June 18, 2021

Time: 4:30 p.m.

Globe, Arizona

The Gila County Sheriff's Office has moved residents of the Hunts Ranch and Strawberry into GO status.
 

GO! - Evacuate
 

Danger in your area is imminent and life threatening.

• Residents should evacuate immediately to a shelter or with family/friends outside of the affected area. Residents should avoid close contact with those who are sick and should practice public health recommendations when relocating.
• If you choose to ignore this advisement, you must understand emergency services may not be able to assist you further.
• Follow instructions from emergency personnel, stay on designated evacuation routes and avoid closed areas.

Red Cross is in the process of getting a shelter up for those evacuated at the Payson High School - 301 S Mc Lane Rd, Payson, AZ 85541. Additional locations can be found if the need arises.
 

For fire information you can visit https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7545/.

For more information on Ready, Set, Go, go to Readyforwildfire.org. You can sign up for alerts via Everbridge at http://www.readygila.com/everbridge/ and follow our social media for daily updates.
 

Sincerely, Carl Melford
 

Gila County Emergency Manager    
 
    

CAMP VERDE, Ariz., June 17, 2021 — The Backbone Fire was reported last night at 11:30 p.m. near the Fossil Creek recreation area and Child’s powerplant substation, approximately 12 miles west of Pine and Strawberry, and 15 miles southeast of Camp Verde.

There is currently no threat to any community, but areas such as Strawberry and Pine should be ready to evacuate should this or any other fire begin to threaten those communities.

The fire is estimated to have grown to 1,200 acres today and is very active in forest fuels such as chaparral, brush, and grass. Crews were successful in conducting burnout operations around the communication tower on Ike's Backbone to protect the infrastructure.

Due to the extreme terrain and location of the fire, access to the area is limited. Five air resources, including air attack, lead plane, helicopter, and two tankers have been working on suppressing the wildfire today.

Air resources were able to drop lines of retardant along the west side of the fire to protect the Child’s powerplant substation, and also on the northeast side of the fire, but there is still zero containment. The Fossil Creek recreation area will be closed due to wildfire danger, which includes Waterfall Trail, Irving/Flume, Tonto Bench, Fossil Creek Bridge, Homestead, Sally May, Purple Mountain, and Mazatzal.

The current strategy is to keep the fire from crossing on the east side of Fossil Creek so that it does not become a threat to Strawberry and Pine.

The Fossil Creek recreation area will be closed due to wildfire danger, which includes Waterfall Trail, Irving/Flume, Tonto Bench, Fossil Creek Bridge, Homestead, Sally May, Purple Mountain, and Mazatzal.

Wildfire start 12 miles west of Strawberry  

Bayfield, CO, June 17, 2021 —The Vosburg Pike Fire is now 100% contained. Firefighters completed containment lines around the entire fire perimeter this afternoon. Hot spots inside the fire lines continue to smolder and produce some smoke but there has been no significant additional fire activity today.

“Fire crews, both on the ground and in the air, did a tremendous job getting fire line around most of the fire yesterday” says Incident Commander Brad Pietruszka. “This is a great example of interagency cooperation — we had federal, state and local resources working together on this fire,” Pietruszka added. The fire burned across very rugged terrain and temperatures have been in the 90’s during the height of the day. The fire perimeter was accurately mapped by a firefighter on foot this morning and the total acreage was revised to just over 67 acres. Burn severity varies across the area with some spots only partially burned and other area with high severity. Some of the Bureau of Land Management property had been thinned in 2008, making fire control efforts easier in those spots. Thinned areas work to reduce the intensity of wildfires. Less intense fire allows firefighters a chance to get closer and stop the fire spread earlier in the incident.

Some firefighters are being sent home or to other fires beginning tonight, with more to be released tomorrow. The Type 3 Incident Management Team will return management of the fire to the local BLM unit tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. Crews will continue to patrol the fire area and take any necessary suppression actions, until the threat has passed.

An incident information page has been established at: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7543/

Smoke from the Vosburg Pike Fire may continue to be visible to surrounding communities for the next few days.  Wildfire smoke may affect your health. For more information, please go to: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/wood-smoke-and-health  

###