Final Update for Cassadore Springs Fire   

Cassadore Springs Fire – August 13, 2020 Daily Update

Ko’ Ba Nagoni i’

Acres: 21,284 acres

Start Date: August 1, 2020

Cause: Lightning

Containment: 83%

Total personnel: 295

Location: 11 miles north of San Carlos, AZ

Fuels: Brush, grass, ponderosa pine

Highlights: The incident management team will host a virtual community meeting tonight, August 13th at 8:00 P.M. at https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/. An American Sign Language interpreter and CART captioning will be provided. A recording will be posted following the meeting. No account is required to view the video. If a pop-up box appears when you first navigate to the link, you can use the scroll bar on the right to scroll down to the view and/or click “not now” to minimize the login pop-up. We will monitor online Facebook questions during the meeting, or you can email us your questions in advance at 2020.CassadoreSprings@firenet.gov.

Transition: This will be the last update from the Southwest Area Incident Management Team 4. On Friday at 6:00 A.M., the team will transfer command of the Cassadore Springs Fire to a Type 4 organization led by Incident Commander Keith Burnette. Resources remaining on the fire include the Geronimo Hotshots, San Carlos T2IA Crew, San Carlos RTAL Crew, four engines, one water tender, one dozer, the Fort Apache Type 3 helicopter and Helitack Crew, and miscellaneous overhead. Any future fire information will be posted on the San Carlos Apache Forestry Facebook page (see link below).

Fire Activity and Operations: The fire is now 83% contained. The only uncontained area is located in steep rugged rim country above Alder Creek. Firefighters are monitoring those spots and are finding no heat at this time. The resources that remain on this fire are available to respond to any new starts in the area.

Weather: An Excessive Heat Warning is in effect through Monday. Temperatures will continue to slowly increase into the weekend, reaching or exceeding record levels by Saturday. A few thunderstorms are expected in the area this afternoon and early evening, then dry weather is anticipated Friday and Saturday. Sunday onward will continue to be much hotter than normal, however easterly flow will bring monsoon moisture into the region. This will result in scattered afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms as well as somewhat higher humidity levels much of next week.

Closures: There is a Temporary Flight Restriction over the fire area. The public is encouraged to stay safely clear of the fire area. The 1120 road to the south, 1122 road to the west, 1300 road to the north, and 1220 road to the east are closed due to fire activity and firefighters working along these roadways.

Thunderstorms Possible at Cassadore Springs Fire   

Cassadore Springs Fire – August 12, 2020 Daily Update

Ko’ Ba Nagoni i’

Acres: 21,258 acres

Start Date: August 1, 2020

Cause: Lightning

Containment: 75%

Total personnel: 325

Location: 11 miles north of San Carlos, AZ

Fuels: Brush, grass, ponderosa pine

 

 Overview: The lightning-caused Cassadore Springs Fire is burning in the Hilltop area on the San Carlos Apache Reservation lands. On Monday August 3rd, the San Carlos Agency delegated authority to the Southwest Area Type 2 Incident Management Team 4 to manage the incident. 

Highlights: The incident management team will host a virtual community meeting on Thursday night, August 13th at 8:00 P.M. at https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/. An American Sign Language interpreter and CART captioning will be provided. A recording will be posted following the meeting. No account is required to view the video. If a pop-up box appears when you first navigate to the link, you can use the scroll bar on the right to scroll down to the view and/or click “not now” to minimize the login pop-up. We will monitor online Facebook questions during the meeting, or you can email us your questions in advance at 2020.CassadoreSprings@firenet.gov. 

Fire Activity and Operations: Yesterday was the first quiet day on the Cassadore Springs Fire since it began on August 1st. Fire managers have increased the containment to 75%. Crews are continuing to perform suppression repair duties and mop up the remaining heat on the fire. There were no new starts yesterday, but the potential remains high as thunderstorms bring in more lightning. The incident management team has started the process of releasing some crews to other fires in the region, while retaining enough resources to effectively manage the Cassadore Springs Fire and respond to any new fire starts. The number of personnel assigned to the fire will continue to decrease due to successful firefighting efforts.

Weather: An Excessive Heat Warning is in effect Wednesday through Monday. The monsoon may be sputtering to life as moisture begins to move north into Arizona. This moisture will bring a risk of thunderstorms to the area both Wednesday and Thursday afternoons with a threat of gusty winds, lightning, and a chance for some rain. Temperatures will remain quite hot, nearing record highs despite the clouds and storms. Friday through Saturday will be hot and generally dry with very few thunderstorms. Sunday into the early part of next week, the monsoon flow looks to strengthen with an increasing chance of showers and thunderstorms.

Daily Operational Video available on the Cassadore Springs Fire Facebook Page:
English: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/920123938485253
Apache:https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/326967028436522

 Containment Increases to 60% on the Cassadore Springs Fire   

Cassadore Springs Fire – August 11, 2020 Daily Update

Ko’ Ba Nagoni i’

Acres: 21,088 acres

Start Date: August 1, 2020

Daily Operational Video available on the Cassadore Springs Fire Facebook Page:
English: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/3236057556449863/
Apache: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/336756927730852/

Turning the Corner on the Cassadore Springs Fire
Cassadore Springs Fire - August 10, 2020 Daily Update

Ko' Ba Nagoni i' 

Acres: 20,337
 
Start Date: August 1, 2020
 
Cause: Lightning
 
Location: 11 miles north of San Carlos, AZ
 
Containment: 26%
 
Fuels: Brush, Grass, ponderosa pine
 
Total personnel: 371 

Overview: The lightning-caused Cassadore Springs Fire is burning in the Hilltop area on the San Carlos Apache Reservation lands. On Monday August 3rd, the San Carlos Agency delegated authority to the Southwest Area Type 2 Incident Management Team 4 to manage the incident.

Fire Activity and Operations: Firefighters made good progress on the Cassadore Springs Fire yesterday. Observations show that the southern flanks are quiet and cool. The eastern side down the Nantanes Plateau and Sontag Creek has proven secure and cooling more each day. On the northern end near Sawmill, Friday’s burnout operation is holding and firefighters are working to mop up the edges of the containment lines. One area of concern for fire growth has been the Alder Creek drainage. On Saturday, helicopters cooled the fire edge with water drops and reduced the flames significantly. Yesterday, two hotshot crews and the San Carlos Type 2 Initial Attack Crew entered the western fire edge along the rim and completed a fireline, securing the flank and reducing the risk of fire becoming established in Alder Creek.

Expect to see smoke today, heavy at times, due to a planned burnout operation in the Sawmill area. The backburn is needed to secure a two square-mile area of unburned fuels in the interior area of Friday’s firing operation. This backburn will again produce low intensity fire along the ground, removing dead and down logs, brush, and grass that could otherwise carry sufficient heat to jump the control lines, if left unchecked. The burnout will only occur if conditions are right. Otherwise, crews may conduct these operations on a more favorable day.

No new fire starts were detected yesterday after Friday’s lightning storm. Crews remain vigilant to identify any new fires that may pop up today. Crews from the Cassadore Springs Fire remained on the Winters and Glade fires, mopping up and preventing any possible rekindling of the flames.

Weather: An Excessive Heat Warning is in effect today for elevations below 3,700 ft. High temperatures will run six to ten degrees warmer than average and only a few degrees away from record levels, with readings over 100 degrees. Humidity levels and afternoon breezes will be more reminiscent of mid-June rather than mid-August. A little moisture may bring a few thunderstorms by weeks end, hopefully with some much-needed rain.

 Daily Operational Video available on the Cassadore Springs Fire Facebook Page:
English: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/293285838647094/ 
Apache: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/313504043344161/

Video about burnout operations on the Cassadore Springs Fire Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/926515237817849/

Rain and Lightning on the Cassadore Springs Fire 
    

Cassadore Springs Fire – August 9, 2020 Daily Update 

Ko’ Ba Nagoni i’ 

Acres: 19,952 acres 

Start Date: August 1, 2020 

Cause: Lightning  

Containment: 25% 

Total personnel: 369 

Location: 11 miles north of San Carlos, AZ 

Fuels: Brush, grass, ponderosa pine 

Overview: The lightning-caused Cassadore Springs Fire is burning in the Hilltop area on the San Carlos Apache Reservation lands. It was first discovered on August 1st and quickly spread to the northeast towards the Natanes Plateau. On Monday August 3rd, the San Carlos Agency delegated authority to the Southwest Area Type 2 Incident Management Team 4 to manage the incident. 

Fire Activity and Operations: Yesterday afternoon, thunderstorms formed over the Cassadore Springs Fire, bringing isolated rain, lightning, and wind gusts up to 38 miles per hour. Two-tenths of an inch of rain fell on the northern and eastern fire landscape. Just two days ago, the fire threatened to overrun Sontag Creek. Due to hard work by firefighters and the help of the rain, this area is now fairly secure. Helicopters worked the western edge of the fire with water drops to improve conditions near Alder Creek so that hotshot crews have the option to safely secure the fire edge in the near future. 

In addition to managing the Cassadore Springs Fire, the Type 2 Team is responsible for providing initial attack for any new fire starts within the planning area and general surroundings. Lightning resulted in multiple new fire starts yesterday, including a new fire off the 1300 Road near Glade Tank. Two engines and a crew from the Cassadore Springs Fire responded and held the fire to 1/2 acre before containing it. Personnel also assisted the Tonto National Forest with initial attack efforts on a new fire start, named the Winters Fire, just north of our Incident Command Post off Highway 60. Three helicopters dropped water while two handcrews, a helitack crew, and a Liaison Officer assisted with the fire fight alongside the US Forest Service firefighters and aircraft. The Winters Fire was contained at approximately 450 acres by Saturday afternoon. At least 29 more lightning strikes hit the area 10 to 15 miles northeast of the fire.  

Closures: There is a Temporary Flight Restriction over the fire area. The public is encouraged to stay safely clear of the fire area. The 1120 road to the south, 1122 road to the west, 1300 road to the north, and 1220 road to the east are closed due to fire activity and firefighters working along these roadways. Please visit the Cassadore Springs Fire Inciweb page at the link below for official fire information. 

Nowhi ni’ nłt’eego ánłsih 

 The daily operational video is now available in both English and Apache language on the Cassadore Springs Fire Facebook page.
English: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/1532506580262301/
Apache: https://www.facebook.com/CassadoreSpringsFireInfo/videos/2984880194974899/