Poco Fire Update
YOUNG,
Ariz. – There was minimal growth on the Poco Fire the last 24 hours.
The fire is now 3,200 acres and containment remains at 15 percent.
The fire continues to burn in extremely rough terrain six miles
northeast of Young.
The forecast shows hot, dry, windy conditions today. The public may notice more smoke during afternoon hours.
The
fire is posing a threat to twin 500 kV electrical transmission lines
that provide energy to Phoenix and Tucson Metro areas. In order to
protect the powerlines, firefighters are constructing and reinforcing
fireline east of the fire in anticipation of a planned burnout operation
between FR 128 and FR 102 when conditions are appropriate.
There
are 677 personnel on scene consisting of 12 hotshot crews, six
twenty-person crews, 23 engines, six dozers, seven water tenders, and
four helicopters. Crews are here from Arizona, California, Idaho,
Utah, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Montana.
Residents
are invited to attend a community meeting tonight at the Young
Community Center at 7:00 p.m. Fire officials will provide an update
on the status of the fire and address public concerns.
Forest
Road 512 remains closed as crews “mop-up” the fire along the south edge
between FR 291 and FR 200 (Chamberlin Trail). In addition,
a portion of the ranger district is closed east of FR 200, south of FR
291 and north of FR 512.
Poco Fire information is posted at
http://www.inciweb.org/incident/2911.
For more information
regarding forest recreation sites and fire restrictions, please contact
the Tonto National Forest at 602 225-5200, or check online at
www.fs.usda.gov/tonto.
# # #
The
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality is coordinating with the
Incident Management Team to monitor smoke impacts
in outlying areas. Visibility is an excellent measure of air quality.
If visibility is ten miles or more, the air quality is good. Visibility
of six to nine miles indicates moderate air quality. Three to five miles
of visibility indicates conditions unhealthy
for people who have respiratory ailments. One and a half to two and a
half miles, the air quality is unhealthy. One to one and a quarter miles
indicates the air quality is very unhealthy. If visibility due to smoke
is less than a mile, the air quality is hazardous.
Smoke-sensitive persons in affected areas may need to take action such
as remaining indoors, using air conditioning, or temporarily moving to
an unaffected area.
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