The so called Bush Fire, which started less than a week ago near the intersection of the Bush Highway and Arizona 87, reportedly sparked by a vehicle fire that got out of control, is now the largest wildfire in the nation and Arizona's 7th largest of all time.


Photo shot three days ago from the Valley looking northeast across Mesa towards Four Peaks and the desert mountains seen in the distance.

Winds from the southwest are pushing the fire northeast through dry grasslands and heavy brush. It has burned across Four Peaks now and down the east slope into Tonto Basin where Jake's Corner is being prepared to evacuate.

(UPDATE): The U.S. Forest Service says all residents and businesses on the state highway from Punkin Center to the junction with Highway 87 have been told to evacuate. That includes Jakes Corner, Pioneer Pass, Brownsville and Slate Creek.



On the West side of the mountain the fire is threatening all the way up AZ87 to Rye, with everyone in that area advised to prepare to evacuate. On through Tonto Basin on the east side of the mountain the fire is headed up slope towards Mt. Ord with its thick stands of Ponderosa and Juniper - and a clear run from there to the Rim and beyond if it remains unchecked.


Smoke from the fire, less than 100 miles southwest of us now and closing fast, turned our mid-day sun blood red overhead and made the sky glow hazy orange.

Worrisome? You bet it is. Sunflower, Punkin Center, Tonto Basin, Jake's Corner and all the way up to Rye on AZ87 are threatened and being evacuated or prepared to do so. If it gets to higher elevations with heavy timber and nothing to stop it we could have a fire that dwarfs anything Arizona has ever seen.

From the edge of the Rim to our little community here in the high country is barely 12 miles. If the fire climbs up the Rim and tops out heading our way we'll be pulling out to the east ASAP. If it gets this far it'll make '02s massive Rodeo-Chedeski fire look like child's play.

We pray for the best and prepare for the worst - that's about all anyone can do in this situation..

Wow, that's a big fire. Strange that there's been no mention of it in the national news, I guess riots are more interesting. Hope the wind dies down or blows the other way and gives some time to get it contained.

not that there's any good time for a huge wildfire but, the confluence of this and the pandemic really bites...

best wishes for minimal loss of property and, more importantly, life from a fellow inhabitant of the land of wildfires.

Bummer- hope there is a meaningful change in the weather so the Forest Service can get a fire line around the leading edge. That Tonto National Forest is a beautiful area. Was already making plans to do some off-roading there this fall. No doubt many of the trails will be closed to protect the landscape from erosion.

George - Those photos are frighting! I can say the best fire fighters in the world are out in the west. With massive resources and experience. I hope winds, weather and their efforts come together to begin containment and eventually put this out. Well wishes for your safety and no loss of property. Here we've had many red flag days and an unseasonable amount of wind. Just a couple of small fires, luckily. One is burning in the Cortez area which I think was a lightening strike. No helpful comments on a car that catches fire and/or its owner that creates this level of destruction. Be safe.

PS: As for the riots, I'll spare everyone my comments on that. None of which would be complimentary.

The Bush Fire is now the 5th largest Arizona has ever seen, having burned over 150,000 acres and still growing. Depending on what report we read the fire is between 7% and 20+% contained. Fortunately the stiff winds of a few days ago have died out, and while we still have smoke rolling up and over the Rim each afternoon, so far it looks as if things may improve in the days to come as our wildland fire crews get ahead of this blaze and slowly knock it back.

Photos below were taken by a Valley news helicopter crew. Lots more to see for anyone interested, but these at least give some indication of how rugged the job of fighting these types of wildland fires really is. Most were shot a few days ago. The third photo shows AZ-87 (Beeline Highway) headed north from Mesa entirely devoid of vehicles.

Typically AZ-87 is a heavily traveled major artery between the Valley and points north including Sunflower, Rye, Payson, Pine, Forest Lakes, Heber-Overgaard, Snowflake, Taylor, Holbrook, I-40, Showlow, Lakeside, Pinetop, etc. However with 87 closed to traffic as the battle against the Bush Fire ramps up, longer routes through Globe and the Salt River Canyon into Showlow, or north on I-17 out of Phoenix to the General Crook Trail, then east from there on AZ-260 winding up the Rim to the intersection with AZ-87 north of Payson and Pine are the only Valley routes left open to our area - and most Valley people don't take these roads or really even know about them anymore.

Typically this time of year we're overrun with flatlanders escaping the Valley's heat, and traffic is almost as heavy as parts of the Valley. But right now the traffic we have with AZ-87 shut down is mostly home town stuff - light almost like dead of winter..









Still hoping for the best of course, as we all are -- but prepared for whatever may come with this entirely unpredictable fire..

The fire has consumed some 200,000 acres so far and continues to grow. Close to 1000 firefighters plus aerial tankers and heavy equipment working the blaze, but so far no end in sight..

The Bush Fire news is more hopeful today. The fire is now about 45% contained, and its growth has slowed considerably compared to earlier days when heat and high winds enabled it to grow by up to 20,000+ acres in just hours.

Fire officials tell us that little wind and cooler weather have helped wildland fire crews contain a lot more of the fire's perimeter. About 700 firefighters are actively working the blaze at any given time. The Sunflower and Apache Lake areas remained evacuated as of this morning, but on Sunday residents of Jake's Corner were allowed to return home.

You can't say enough about our wildland fire crews and the work they do to contain and knock back fires like this monster blaze.

For those who've paid little attention to the bravery, skill and dedication these crews bring to wildland fire fighting, let me recommend a movie called "Only The Brave". It tells the story of Arizona's 'Granite Mountain Hotshots', the fire crew that lost their lives battling a lightning caused wildfire in rugged country near Yarnell, Arizona, on June 28, 2013.

The Yarnell Fire overran and killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots. The movie tells the story of this dedicated fire crew and the tragic circumstances of that devastating event. It's a powerful reminder of what these crews face every time they put their lives on the line to secure our deserts and forests from the destruction fires like these leave in their wake.

Glad they're beginning to get it under control. Can you imagine what these fires would do 200 years ago?

Today the Bush Fire is reported as almost 75% contained. From its point of origin near the intersection of the Bush Highway with AZ-87 it burned to the northeast devastating about 200,000 acres of rugged desert and lower elevation forest. Presently it has burned some 60 miles northeast from where it started to Deer Creek, about two thirds of the distance to Payson which lies on the shoulder of the Rim at 5500 ft elevation some 90 miles northeast of the Valley.



If the weather continues to cooperate, which is never a given, this fire may be fully contained in the next day or so and tamping down hot spots will be what's left. Fingers crossed with hopes and prayers for this result still going up - along with gratitude and thanks for the work our wildland fire crews are putting in..