Firefighters from South Lake Tahoe head to New Mexico and Arizona fires

Submitted by paula on Thu, 06/15/2017 - 5:28pm

Two local firefighters will be joining almost 600 California-based U.S. Forest Service wildland firefighters and support personnel as they head to Arizona and New Mexico to fight massive fires.

In Arizona, almost 40,000 acres have burned in over ten fires; In New Mexico 13,000 acres have burned this week, over 30,000 acres last week.

The personnel that are part of this mobilization come from all 18 national forests in California (Pacific Southwest Region).

Two local firefighters from the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) are currently dispatched to the fires near Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. Steve Burns, LTBMU Assistant Fire Management Officer, is assigned as an Operations Chief for the Highline Fire on the Tonto National Forest near Phoenix. Phil Heitzke, LTBMU Engine 43 Captain, is assigned as a Task Force Leader for the Lizard Fire on the Coronado National Forest near Tucson. Captain Phil Heitzke from Engine 43 Meeks Bay is also fighting the fires.

Other USFS firefighting resources include 19 engines, 18 fire crews (20-person), including 3 hotshot crews, a helicopter and over 100 specialists such as dispatchers, safety officers, aviation managers and fire prevention patrols.
"We have the largest wildland fire response organization in the country," said Jeanne Wade Evans, Deputy Regional Forester for the Pacific Southwest Region. "We're prepared for our wildfire season in California and have the capacity to provide these national firefighting resources to the Forests and communities in the Southwest."

California experienced one of the wettest winters on record and fire activity on National Forest lands in the state has been minimal thus far. The U.S. Forest Service has about 5,000 firefighters in California for the 2017 season.

For interagency wildfire information nationwide, visit InciWeb at: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/. For additional information on wildfires in the Southwest visit: http://www.wildlandfire.az.gov/ (Arizona) and https://nmfireinfo.com/ (New Mexico).