83°F
weather icon Clear

Arizona wildfire near Superior triples in size since Friday

Updated June 16, 2019 - 7:51 pm

SUPERIOR, Ariz. — A human-caused wildfire in east-central Arizona near Superior continues to grow and remains uncontained.

The Woodbury Fire that has been burning for a week now in the Tonto National Forest has charred about 57 square miles of grass and brush in rugged terrain as of Sunday morning.

The fire has tripled in size since Friday due to hot and dry conditions.

It’s now about 5 miles northwest of Superior. But authorities say there are no threats yet to the communities of Queen Valley Estates, Gold Canyon, Kings Ranch, Superior and Apache Junction.

Incident management officials say firefighting efforts on the fire’s north end will concentrate on protecting campgrounds, infrastructure, powerlines and businesses along State Highway 88.

More than 720 firefighters and other personnel are assigned to the blaze.

Tonto National Forest is about 350 miles southeast of Las Vegas.

Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.
THE LATEST
3 officers killed, 5 wounded in North Carolina shooting

The shootout in suburban Charlotte happened as officers with a U.S. Marshals Task Force were trying to serve a warrant for a wanted felon, who was killed by police.

Columbia University begins suspending Gaza war protesters

Colleges around the U.S. implored pro-Palestinian student protesters to clear out tent encampments with rising levels of urgency Monday.

Demonstrations roil U.S. campuses ahead of graduations as protesters spar over Gaza conflict

LOS ANGELES — Protests are roiling college campuses across the U.S. as upcoming graduation ceremonies are threatened by disruptive demonstrators, with students and others sparring over Israel’s military offensive in Gaza and its mounting death toll.

Biden and Netanyahu speak as pressure builds on Hamas, Israel

TEL AVIV, Israel— The White House on Sunday said President Joe Biden had again spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as pressure builds on Israel and Hamas terrorists to reach a deal that would free some Israeli hostages and bring a cease-fire in the nearly seven-month-long war in Gaza.