6/29/2008 2:21:00 PM Hiker's fire threatens Crown King
The Daily Courier/Matt Hinshaw
A USDA Forest Service ground crew moves in to load up a Lockheed Martin P3 Orion slurry bomber with fire retardant Sunday afternoon at the Forest Service Prescott Fire Center at Ernest A. Love Field. Slurry bombers were heading to the Lane 2 Fire in Crown King to battle the human-caused forest fire.
The Daily Courier/Matt Hinshaw
Crown King residents Dawn Colt, right, and Candita Gamble cry together at the Red Cross Shelter at Mayer High School Sunday evening while smoke rises from the Lane 2 fire in the background.
A lost hiker reportedly lit a signal fire that turned into a major blaze Sunday and forced the evacuation of Crown King south of Prescott.
By Sunday night the 500-acre fire had destroyed one structure and was less than a mile from homes and the historic Oro Belle mine.
Yavapai County Search and Rescue teams were searching for five lost hikers on the Prescott National Forest Saturday when one apparently became separated from the others and set the signal fire, according to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office.
Fires are currently illegal on the Prescott National Forest outside of developed campgrounds because of the extreme fire danger.
Forest Service officials wouldn't talk about the details of what happened. They said the report of the fire came in at 11:15 p.m. Saturday.
By noon Sunday officials were evacuating the town, as well as campgrounds and summer homes in nearby Horsethief Basin. A few people refused to leave, said Debbie Maneely, Prescott National Forest information officer.
Approximately 250 people live full-time in Crown King, a forest inholding about 30 miles south of Prescott, the Yavapai County Emergency Management Division said. And sometimes as many as 1,500 people can be recreating on the forest in the remote Crown King area.
The Sheriff's Office didn't have information about the hiker Sunday or whether the hiker faces charges.
Evacuee Lori Danner knew what should happen to the hiker.
"I think he should pay for the damages he caused," said Danner, who had to flee her home with her husband, four children and three dogs.
The Red Cross set up a shelter for evacuees at the Mayer High School, where 40 people registered and as many as 11 people were staying Sunday night, spokesperson Tracey Kiest said. Approximately 120 people have evacuated the area. About 40 people were waiting in Cleator in hopes of going home Sunday night.
Danner said her family was staying with friends in Spring Valley. She was thankful the local Animal Disaster Services had a place to keep her dogs near the high school.
During a 3:30 p.m. update at the shelter, the Danners heard the blaze had jumped north over Forest Road 52.
"We thought for sure our home was gone," Danner said.
But later, they felt heartened to hear that plane retardant was holding the flames back from the 15 or so residences closest to the blaze.
This is the first time officials recall having to evacuate residents of the area because of a fire, although they have had at least two close calls.
The Daily Courier will post a time and place for a community meeting on dCourier.com when it is available.
The wind was blowing out of the southwest Sunday, but a temporary shift in the wind late Sunday afternoon also helped firefighters, Maneely said.
Five heavy air tankers, two small planes, two helicopters and 60 firefighters on the ground were helping battle the blaze Sunday afternoon, and officials were asking for help from 19 fire engines and crews.
A national Type II team was scheduled to take over the firefighting attack this morning, led by Incident Commander Tony Sciacca, who spent three decades in fire management on that part of the forest.
Reader Comments
Posted: Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Article comment by:
MC
THANK YOU FIREFIGHTERS!!!! And as for the residents of Crown King, you're in our thoughts & prayers! I would just like to take a minute & remind each & every Prescottonian/Californian that this is the reason for Prescribed Burns. And when the Forest Service does their job to protect us from fires like these, whether it's closing down the forest/restrictions or conducting a presbribed burn - DON'T WHINE!!! And the person who set the "signal fire" - GO BACK TO THE CITY!!! By saving yourself you put a LOT of peoples lives at risk. I hope you can live with that!
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Brayden
Could this fire have been started by a "Latent Pyromaniac" instead of one who claims to have lost sight of her hiking partner and offered up a signal? Brayden
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Brayden
MV > Smart "move" on your part! It must have been difficult to choose a different location to settle in Sedona when I know the Canyon is so lovely. But you were smart not to settle in the forest. People need to use caution when deciding where to lay down their roots. So sorry for all of you who are suffering at this time. Prayers and thoughts are with you all! Stay safe!
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Josh
Why would the person not just hike to high ground. From the top portion of that area pretty much everything can be seen, highways, towns, roads, EVERYTHING!!! my guess is they were some lazy person that didn't feel like walking
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
MV
In 1979 I had an opportunity of purchasing a home in Oak Creek Canyon, Sedona. What a beautiful area to live. However, after taking several days to walk the canyon and check out the terrain I decided it wouldn't be worth the risk to live in such a confined area. An area prone to fires, campers smoke rising into what would have been my home, traffic on a one road in and out only. Rising creek in heavy rains. I never regretted my decision not to live in the canyon. Living in the forest and in a flood plain is a risk, no matter what the cause of destruction may be. I am deeply sorry for all the loss of so many, here and in the mid-west. Think before you buy. Think really hard of the location. Out Of the Woods
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
K
Just remember, that the majority of fires are lightening started, so while this one happens to be started by a panic induced moronic move, we live in wild fire country and have a forest that burns, it needs to, its part of the ecosystem. It sucks when people loose thier homes, but really, what is the difference between someone who buys a home in forest that is known to burn and looses it to a fire and someone who builds a house in a wash or floodplain and looses it in a flood? Nothing, its a risk inherent to living in places where maybe you shouldnt be living. I feel for the families, but at the same time, they should have known its coming, everyone around this town has had plenty of warning and plenty of opputunity to make appropriate plans for these events. I'm not saying it isnt tragic, but blaming hikers and the forest service to the point of banning its use isnt going to stop the next fire, which statistically will be started by natural causes. We live in a place that burns, theres not much we can do about that accept accepting it. Sure living in Crown King and the woods around prescott offers many rewards, peace and beauty, etc. But before you buy a house in a dry desert woods, think if you are ready and willing to loose it, becuase theres a chance that will.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Wendy
Didn't anyone learn anything from the Rodeo/Chedeski fire??? If anything, that fire should have been enough to educate people on what to do if they get lost in an Arizona forest and the massive distruction that can be caused from a signal fire. I can't believe history is repeating itself. My husband and I, along with my family and friends had suffer a tremendous loss from that fire and now all my childhood memories of growing up in Crown King are litterly going up in smoke. What is it going to take in order for people to understand the dangers of signal fires. I hope the beauty of our state will survive these costly mistakes.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
AB
If I were the Courier, I wouldn't print the person's name that did this, stupid, not thinking act! It is hard to breathe and I can hardly see Thumb Butte. Please close down the forest. We don't need the tourist money this bad, if it was a tourist. PJP, you made a good point.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
shizzy
The hiker should be held accountable for damages to give the message to others just what the devastation to others has caused. It's hard to understand how an 'outdoor' person hiking doesn't realize the dangers of starting any kind of fire in a dry forest.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
elwoodsplace
The editor has removed this comment because it violates the Terms of Use agreement for dCourier.com.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
EO
Interesting approach AC. Just when was "like it used to be"? I agree there are problems with the forest management that have lead to more extreme fire conditions, but look at the "management" of the forest when Loggers and ranchers had free rein. Soil erosion was so bad in places that nothing grew, so cattle starved during hard winters or dry periods. Drinking water and fresh surface water disappeared. California and the Northwest have recently seen the affects of over logging with mud slides and flooding. We know what happens whn you let people do anything they want "for free." They simply over do it to the point of total destruction. Our forest are already covered with ATV trails that meander well off any established trail system. Fire wood cutters were regularly taking down live trees rather than collecting dead and down (I caught one this past winter cutting old growth Juniper). These fires have happened even when things were "the way they used to be." Fires like this are the product of unskilled and unprepared people camping in places that they shouldn't be camping, given their skill level. I don't want the manaement practices we have today either, but the last thing I want is to let people do as they want in the forest. That practice has always been a disaster in our forests.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Curmudgeon
Hey, not only should the idiot be fined, jailed, required to pay for all damages (public & private), but how about some public serice. Put him on a fire supression crew to work on fires like the one he started. Now that (all of the above) would be justice!
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Ethan
Try a compass next time. Works better than a signal fire, is more reliable than a cell phone and isn't affected by any management policies.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Bill Marks
You know AC your right they should have never kicked the loggers or the ranchers out of the forest. These fires, well not this one but lighting started fires are mother natures way of cleaning house. The stoped the logging and the grazing in allot of AZ country so the next best thing is wildfire and thats what it needs is to burn makes better feed for wildlife and makes for a better forest. As for the hiker they need to throw him or her in jail and make them pay for the cost of fighting the fire, the gas for the people to be evacuated and for the money the red cross spent on making a shelter in the school.
Posted: Monday, June 30, 2008
Article comment by:
isabella beruttto
This hiker wasn't thinking from the
time he left his house. Cell phones
really don't work in wooded areas,
walkie talkies work much better,
yes I agree that there needs to be
posted STUPID HIKER/CAMPER LAWS and anyone caught in a no over nite zone will be fined
$600.00 for first time offenders
second time offenders $2000.
NO IF OR BUTS
