Evacuations Ordered as Bighorn Fire Spreads Through Arizona Mountains
The Bighorn fire, burning in the mountains north of Tucson, Arizona, had scorched nearly 16,000 acres as of Tuesday, June 16, as evacuations were ordered for Mount Lemmon and the community of Summerhaven.
The fire was ignited by lightning at the west end of the Santa Catalina Mountains on June 5, according to the Pima County Office of Emergency Management. The fire then moved east and south “closer to populated areas of the Catalina Foothills,” the notice said.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Office issued a “Ready Set Go” order under the state’s evacuation system for Lower Catalina Highway/Lower Mt. Lemmon Communities from Organization Ridge Road to South Willow Canyon.
Sheriff’s deputies were going door-to-door during the evacuation process and the fire was at 30 percent containment on Tuesday, according to reports.
These video shows smoke rising from the mountains as the fire burns and helicopter tankers dropping water on the blaze. Credit: shawnphenomenon via Storyful
