FLAGSTAFF — The Flagstaff Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (TREX) plans to conduct prescribed burns on Observatory Mesa from Friday November 5 through Sunday, November 7, 2021. Burns each day will be less than 100 acres and will be dependent on weather conditions.
With light southwest winds forecasted, smoke may impact central Flagstaff during the day and settle overnight into the Cheshire, Coconino Estates, downtown, Southside, Railroad Springs and Northern Arizona University campus areas. For more information on smoke and air quality, please visit http://www.azdeq.gov/WildfireForecast or https://legacy.azdeq.gov/environ/air/smoke/.
Trails in the area, including the Tunnel Springs section of the Flagstaff Urban Trail System, will be closed.
Flagstaff Fire Department Wildland Section staff are leading these prescribed burns, with assistance from the Flagstaff Fire Department Fuels Crew, Summit Fire and Medical District, TREX participants from other fire departments and the United States Forest Service/ Coconino National Forest. TREX participants spent the past two weeks learning about wildland fire history and conditions in the Flagstaff area and preparing the Observatory Mesa project area for the prescribed burns this week.
The prescribed burn area was thinned five years ago as part of the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project. A detailed prescribed fire plan was developed to re-introduce fire that will burn across the forest floor, as frequent, low-intensity fire removes accumulated smaller fuels and recycles nutrients in the soils to promote healthy vegetation and wildlife habitat. This approach helps to restore forests to healthier conditions and improve the safety of the communities around them.
For any related questions, please contact Neil Chapman, Wildland Forest Health Supervisor, at 928-213-2512 or Neil.Chapman@flagstaffaz.gov.