The Wallow fire may be nearly contained, but areas affected by it are not out of the woods yet.
The fire that began on May 29 has burned over half a million acres of land through Apache, Navajo, Graham, and Greenlee counties in Arizona, Catron County in New Mexico, and the Fort Apache and San Carlos Apache Indian reservations, leaving behind woody debris to congest drainage areas. In addition, the trees and shrubs that help contain runoff from storms and melted snow are gone, creating the likelihood of flooding.
The Wallow fire burned vast portions of the White Mountains, including areas of steep terrain, which will make numerous locations vulnerable to flash floods and debris. According to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Flagstaff, flows of even moderate intensity rains (10 to 15 minutes) can be dangerous. Some area streams and rivers are likely to see flows beyond anything seen in decades if typical or above average rains occur.
Currently the NWS is reporting high pressure over the area that will continue to feed moisture into the region. Moisture is moving over southern Apache and Navajo counties, and will have the best chance for thunderstorm activity and could cause flash flooding, particularly within or adjacent to the burn areas.
This summer, all residents near streams, rivers or steep burned hillsides should be alert to flooding and debris flows. Residents should be aware that area roadways could also become impassible due to mud, rock and debris slides, or due to streams and washes overwhelming existing culverts and bridges.
In an effort to minimize the impact of those rains, Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) crews and fire crews have begun the arduous task of removing woody debris from areas affected by the fire areas in preparation for the likelihood of flooding.
So far woody debris has been cleared from drainage areas in the Greer area and through Butler Canyon. Picnic tables are being removed from campgrounds at Blue River, as well as the south fork of the Little Colorado River, and east and west forks of Black River in preparation of increased water flows. Restrooms at these campgrounds will be pumped and locked in preparation for high waters.
Sand and sandbags have been delivered to local volunteer fire departments and other locations throughout the area. County road crews are removing culverts and putting in low water crossings along county roads that may be affected by an increased volume of runoff. County workers are also positioning equipment in locations where there is the greatest potential of roads washing out.
All of the Apache National Forest is closed to public entry, including the Big Lake area, Luna Lake, and Nelson Reservoir, the Black River area, and Greer lakes and campgrounds.
All of the Sitgreaves National Forest is closed to public entry except for some sites within the Lakeside and Black Mesa ranger districts. For information on those areas, call (928) 333-4301.
