(The Center Square) – A forecasted decrease in winds Thursday is expected to help more than 400 personnel fighting the Greer Fire, an eastern Arizona blaze that burned more than 7,000 acres and forced evacuations.
The wildfire started around 11 a.m. Tuesday in the unincorporated community of Greer in Apache County. The blaze doubled in size Wednesday as it pushed east toward Eagar and Springerville. The cause remains under investigation.
Evacuation orders by the Apache County Sheriff’s Office and closures of roads and highways remained in effect around the Greer Fire Thursday morning, according to Arizona radio station KTAR. A shelter for evacuees was open in St. Johns at the Apache County Fairgrounds.
Only three structures and a trailer have been burned by the fire, KTAR reported.
Containment remained at 0% Thursday, the Arizona Department of Forestry reported. The department said firefighters from departments across the state made progress Wednesday constructing a containment line in and around Greer.
“Despite challenging high winds, two scooper aircraft operated throughout the day (on Wednesday), supported by two heavy helicopters and one light helicopter conducting water bucket drops,” said the Southwest Area Incident Management Team, which took command of operations Thursday morning. “The scoopers, pulling water from Lyman Lake, focused suppression efforts along both the right and left flanks of the fire, with an emphasis on structure protection and limiting south and eastward spread.”
The fire crossed Highway 260 on Wednesday, and both highways 260 and 261 remain closed because of the fire, the management team said.
A closure order was also issued for lands within the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest.
Firefighting operations on Thursday were expected to take advantage of a potential decrease in winds, which would allow use of heavy aircraft along with helicopters to fight the blaze, spokesperson Kym O’Farrell wrote on a website operated by emergency management staff from Apache and Navajo counties.
O’Farrell added a task force of fire engines is dedicated to protecting homes near and ahead of the blaze.
On Thursday, smoke was expected to disperse to the northeast with light to moderate impacts to Eagar and Springerville, according to the Southwest Area Incident Management Team.
The area is seeing minimum humidity at 12% to 15%.
