The Bighorn Fire Video Update for July 12, 2020 with Operations Section Chief Buck Wickham is now available on the Bighorn Fire Info Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo/videos/277655470232388/

Fire officials have received several questions from surrounding communities about the smoke column currently visible on the Bighorn Fire. Firefighters are aware of the rising smoke, and have checked the area. The smoke is coming from well within the interior of the fire perimeter and is reacting to outflow winds from passing storms. Crews will continue to monitor.

Bighorn Fire – July 11, 2020 Daily Update

Southwest Area Type 2 Incident Management Team 4

Carl Schwope, Incident Commander 

Bighorn Fire Info: (520) 329-7439, 8AM-8PM

Media Phone Line: (520) 329-7640, 8AM-8PM

Website: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6741/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo

Smoke: wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlooks/EasternArizona

Burned Area Response: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6796/

NWS Burn Scar: www.weather.gov/twc/bighorn-burn-scar
 

Incident Statistics

Location:  Santa Catalina Mountains

Size:  119,250 acres

Containment:  85%

Date detected:  June 5, 2020

Cause:  Lightning

Resources: 3 Hand Crews, 8 Engines, 1 Dozer, 1 Water-tender, 1 Helicopter, 263 Personnel  
 

Highlights: A forest closure remains in effect for the areas surrounding the Bighorn Fire. Residents are reminded that it is illegal to enter the forest area closure.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has adjusted the restrictions for the Catalina Highway. All Summerhaven, Soldier Camp, and Willow Canyon residents and employees (with proper documentation) will be allowed to return without an escort. More details are available at https://www.facebook.com/pimasheriff

A virtual community meeting is being planned for Sunday, July 12 at 3:00 p.m. at https://www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo/

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.bighorn@firenet.gov. This will be the last meeting hosted by the Southwest Area Incident Management Team 4.

Weather: Mostly sunny to partly cloudy, then late morning and afternoon buildups over the mountains. Isolated thunderstorms are likely in the area but should stay south and east of the fire. Minimum humidity levels will range from around 12% across the lower elevations to 18 to 28% over the higher elevations. Temperatures will range from 106-111 degrees in the valley. The Excessive Heat Warning issued for Southeast Arizona remains in place through Monday evening.

Yesterday’s Activity: Chipping operations were completed in Carter Canyon and Marshall Gulch. On the southwest corner of the Pusch Ridge Wilderness near Pima Canyon, crews disassembled a one-mile long hose lay of firehose, pumps, and water holding tanks.

The Bighorn Fire Video Update for July 11, 2020 with Operations Section Chief Buck Wickham is now available on the Bighorn Fire Info Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=279111960024772

Residents and recreationists are reminded that it is illegal to enter the forest area closure. https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/coronado/alerts-notices

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has adjusted the restrictions for the Catalina Highway.
All Summerhaven, Soldier Camp, and Willow Canyon residents and employees (with proper documentation) will be allowed to return without an escort. The highway remains closed for non-residents.
More details are available at https://www.facebook.com/pimasheriff.

Bighorn Fire – July 10, 2020 Daily Update

Southwest Area Type 2 Incident Management Team 4

Carl Schwope, Incident Commander 

 

Bighorn Fire Info: (520) 329-7439, 8AM-8PM

Media Phone Line: (520) 329-7640, 8AM-8PM

Website: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6741/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo

Smoke: wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlooks/EasternArizona

Burned Area Response: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6796/

NWS Burn Scar: www.weather.gov/twc/bighorn-burn-scar

Incident Statistics

Location:  Santa Catalina Mountains

Size:  119,236 acres

Containment:  85%

Date detected:  June 5, 2020

Cause:  Lightning

Highlights: The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has adjusted the restrictions for the Catalina Highway. All Summerhaven, Soldier Camp, and Willow Canyon residents and employees (with proper documentation) will be allowed to return without an escort. More details are available at https://www.facebook.com/pimasheriff. Residents are reminded that it is illegal to enter the forest area closure.

Residents that have returned to Summerhaven may continue to see smoke during the day along with possible embers glowing at night. Firefighters continue to patrol around Summerhaven to ensure there is no active fire that could pose a threat to the residents in Summerhaven, Soldier Camp, and Willow Canyon. Successful firefighting efforts have resulted in increased containment up to 85%.

Weather: Mostly sunny followed by late morning and afternoon cloud buildups over the mountains. Minimum humidity levels are increasing to 15% across the lower elevations and 20 to 30% in the higher elevations. Temperatures will range from 103‑108 degrees in the valley. Hot temperatures are expected to increase into the weekend, with Sunday being the hottest day. An Excessive Heat Warning has been issued for Southeast Arizona starting Friday afternoon through Monday evening.

Yesterday’s Activity: Chipping operations began in Carter Canyon near Summerhaven to reduce brush and other vegetation material created during fireline construction. Firefighters “ground-truthed” several heat sources that were detected on the Wednesday night infrared flight. After a thorough investigation, firefighters determined that these hot spots were located safely within the containment lines and posed no threat.

A recording of last night’s Online Community Meeting is available at: https://www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo/

Today’s Activity: Continue backhaul and removal of fire suppression materials.  On the southwest corner of the Pusch Ridge Wilderness near Pima Canyon, crews will begin to disassemble a one-mile long hose lay of firehose, pumps, and water holding tanks. Rehabilitation of fireline will continue in the Marshall Gulch area. In addition to working on the suppression and repair projects, firefighters are also available to assist with any initial attack response needed for new fire starts in the area.

County Evacuation and Flood Information

PIMA    

Pima.gov/bighorn

 myalerts.pima.gov 

COCHISE             

cochise.az.gov/emergency

PINAL   

www.pinal.gov

pinalcountyaz.gov/emergencymanagement

A temporary flight restriction is in place over the fire area. If you fly, we can’t knowbeforeyoufly.org.

Closures: Cascabel Road at the Cochise County/Pima County line is now open. Sabino Canyon, Bear Canyon, and Catalina State Park are closed. Catalina Highway is closed to the public at milepost zero. Closures and maps are available at inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/6741/.

Forest conditions: fs.usda.gov/alerts/coronado/alerts-notices  

 The Bighorn Fire Video Update for July 10, 2020 with Operations Section Chief Buck Wickham is now available on the Bighorn Fire Info Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo/videos/2649774378592068

 The Bighorn Fire Video Update for July 9, 2020 with Operations Section Chief Buck Wickham is now available on the Bighorn Fire Info Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo/videos/927294287695137

Join fire managers for an online community meeting Tonight July 9, at 8:00 p.m. 

An American Sign Language interpreter and 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.  https://www.facebook.com/bighornfireinfo/

We will monitor online Facebook questions during the meeting or you can e-mail us your questions in advance at 2020.bighorn@firenet.gov

We will try to answer as many questions as we can. 
A recording of the informational meeting will be available on the Facebook page for later viewing.