Strong south winds kept the Crooks Fire active Wednesday

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Eight miles south of Prescott, Arizona

3-D Map Crooks Fire 3 a.m. MDT April 28, 2022
3-D Map of the Crooks Fire, looking north. The red line was the perimeter at 3 a.m. MDT April 28, 2022. The white line was the perimeter two days before.

The northwest side of the Crooks Fire 8 miles south of Prescott, Arizona was very active Wednesday. In the last two days the section of the fire near Golden Eagle Road/Forest Road 97B has spread one mile to the west. Strong winds out of the south with 10 percent relative humidity contributed to the rapid spread. Wind gusts of 30 mph drove the fire west of Lookout Mountain toward Dosoris Canyon, pushing smoke into Prescott and surrounding communities. Crews were successful in holding the 52 Spur Road to keep the fire west of the affected communities. Most of the east side saw little or no movement Wednesday.

According to the Incident Management Team the fire has burned 9,014 acres.

Map Crooks Fire 3 a.m. MDT April 28, 2022
Map of the Crooks Fire. The red line was the perimeter at 3 a.m. MDT April 28, 2022. The white line was the perimeter two days before.

On Thursday dozers and hand crews will work to strengthen the containment lines along Forest Service Road (FSR) 82. Favorable terrain may allow firefighters to access the fire’s edge west of Lookout Mountain, with the assistance of aircraft. Structure protection remains a key tactical objective and crews continue to perform defensive operations throughout the area.

Resources assigned as of Wednesday evening included 20 hand crews, 41 fire engines, and 14 helicopters for a total of 855 personnel.

The weather forecast for Thursday at 7,200 feet elevation calls for 21 mph gusting out of the south and southwest at 30 mph with relative humidity in the mid-teens. The elevation at the fire ranges from 5,000 to 7,000 feet. Friday the winds will decrease to 15 mph with 22 mph gusts from the west with 10 percent relative humidity.

sprinklers firefighters fire Mt. Tritle Crooks
Firefighters set up sprinklers to protect structures in the Mt. Tritle area. USFS photo, April 27, 2022.

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Author: Bill Gabbert

After working full time in wildland fire for 33 years, he continues to learn, and strives to be a Student of Fire.

4 thoughts on “Strong south winds kept the Crooks Fire active Wednesday”

  1. Our agencys approach to “point protection” is to place sprinklers on the peaks of buildings when possible. Often ground placed sprinklers unless very secure tend to fall over and just dig a hole in the ground.

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  2. They are currently using one or more Chinooks to haul water out of the Prescott area to the fire
    In talking with some of the fire personnel, they intend to establish a Spike Camp on the West side. Let’s hope that southerly push of wind doesn’t head that way as well.

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