Woodbury Fire
{{short description|Wildfire in Arizona}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox wildfire|area={{convert|123,875|acres}}|cause=Human activity|location=Superstition Mountains, Arizona|title=Woodbury Fire|image=Woodbury_Fire,_2019.jpg|caption=Tonto National Monument during firing operations}}Woodbury Fire was a wildfire in the Superstition Wilderness, northwest of Superior, Arizona, that started on June 8, 2019. The fire burned a total area of 123,875 acres.{{Cite web|title=Rabbits, bears and bobcats: How has the Woodbury Fire affected Arizona wildlife habitat?|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-wildfires/2019/06/26/how-has-woodbury-fire-affected-arizona-wildlife-habitat/1565888001/|last=Totiyapungprasert|first=Priscilla|website=azcentral|access-date=2020-05-25}} It was the fifth largest wildfire in Arizona’s history.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire 100% contained Monday night, not controlled|url=https://ktar.com/story/2655519/woodbury-fire-100-contained-monday-night-not-controlled/|date=2019-07-16|website=KTAR.com|access-date=2020-05-25}}{{Cite web|title=See how Woodbury Fire impacted archaeological sites in Tonto National Forest|url=https://www.azfamily.com/news/arizona_wildfires/see-how-woodbury-fire-impacted-archaeological-sites-in-tonto-national-forest/article_7f95eaf4-2144-11ea-9dda-af8461935733.html|last=Loew|first=Morgan|website=AZFamily|access-date=2020-05-25}} The blaze caused the evacuation of homes, road and campground closures, endangered wildlife habitats, and the destruction of hiking trails and archaeological sites.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire is at 100% containment, but it's not controlled|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-wildfires/2019/07/16/woodbury-fire-100-containment-but-its-not-controlled/1742966001/|last=Carpenter|first=Aubrey|website=azcentral|access-date=2020-05-25}}
Origin
The fire erupted five miles in the Superstition Mountains east of Mesa, near the Woodbury Trailhead, north of Superior, Arizona, in the Tonto National Forest.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire|url=https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/689c45d3baf14ed3b2fefa18ea577940|website=ArcGIS StoryMaps|date=29 August 2019 |access-date=2020-05-25}} The origin of the fire was human-based.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire 2019 - Tonto National Monument (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://www.nps.gov/tont/learn/historyculture/woodbury-fire.htm|date=|website=www.nps.gov|access-date=2020-05-25}}
Description
The fire was reported around 1:28 PM on June 8.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire near Phoenix, Arizona - Current Incident Information and Wildfire Map {{!}} Fire, Weather & Avalanche Center|url=https://www.fireweatheravalanche.org/wildfire/incident/76290/arizona/woodbury-fire|website=FireWeatherAvalanche.org|access-date=2020-05-25}} On June 18, the fire was only 6% contained, and 40,557 acres were burnt.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire Containment Reaches Six Percent|url=https://ein.az.gov/emergency-information/emergency-bulletin/woodbury-fire-containment-reaches-six-percent|website=ein.az.gov|access-date=2020-05-25}} By June 21, the fire had burnt 54, 998 acres, while the containment had dropped from 42% to 34%.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire grows additional 14,000 acres|url=https://ein.az.gov/emergency-information/emergency-bulletin/woodbury-fire-grows-additional-14000-acres|website=ein.az.gov|access-date=2020-05-25}} As of Tuesday night, June 26, the fire had scorched 121,899 acres, and firefighters had contained 48% of the fire.
Due to the size and complexity of the fire, both government agencies and private contractors were deployed to gain control of the fire. By mid-June, there were 450 firefighters to fight the flames.
On Monday, July 15, by 7:00 PM, the fire was fully contained.{{Cite web|title=Woodbury Fire 100% contained, yet not controlled|url=https://www.paysonroundup.com/news/forest_management_wildfires/woodbury-fire-100-contained-yet-not-controlled/article_f036dd5e-a8b8-11e9-8663-8f31a436661b.html|last=Inciweb.nwcg.gov|website=paysonroundup.com|date=17 July 2019 |access-date=2020-05-25}}
= Use of UAS =
On June 26, 2019, an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) was deployed by Justin Baxter, a drone fire operations specialist, and his three-man team. They flew a Matrice 600 (M600) for gathering data on the magnitude of damage and locating hot spots using an infrared sensor.{{Cite web|title=Drone usage on the rise in wildfire fighting {{!}} News21|url=http://stateofemergency.news21.com/blog/wildfire-drone-usage-rise-arizona-woodbury-fire/|date=2019-07-15|website=State of Emergency {{!}} News21|access-date=2020-05-25}}
Consequences
The fire destroyed the habitat of the white-tailed and mule deer, javelinas, bighorn sheep, black bears, coyotes, bobcats and gray foxes. It also burnt 989 acres of land within Tonto National Monument.
Closures
The areas burned by the fire presented the risk of severe flooding due to which a 7-mile, unpaved section of State Route 88 (Apache Trail), starting past Tortilla Flat to State Highway 188 at Theodore Roosevelt Dam, was closed. Apache Lake and Marina, Apache Campgrounds, and picnic sites were also sealed.
A portion of the Arizona Trail (AZT) and Hewitt Station (Forest Road 357) was also closed for public safety. The Forest Service closed sites included Crabtree Wash, Davis Wash, Burnt Corral, Three-Mile Wash, and Fish Creek.