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Named the "East Desert Fire" just north of the Cave Creek Regional Park. The smoke is very bad at our home now. Hope they get a handle on this
https://ktar.com/story/3164884/fire-in- ... 500-acres/

@outdoor_lover wrote..."sucking up golf balls on the nearest golf course water trap".
Folks complained about the word "trap" so the USGA made the change to "water hazard" and "sand trap" to "bunker".
Now, a new set of folks is being triggered by the word "hazard", so they have changed the term to "penalty area" as of 1-1-20.
Any bets as to how long "penalty" will last before someone decides they're offended by that word?
Sorry for going off topic, but had to add my

This is parked at the Payson airport. The big slurry bombers mainly use Gateway for slurry reloading.

@Alston_Neal
Ditto

Bartlett Lake is close enough to supply water.

Lake Pleasant is ~50% closer to the fire than Bartlett or Horseshoe. But all three are highly visited recreational lakes and aerial operations would likely require officials to close an area of the lake for public safety. So there's probably logistics involved on all fronts. Golf course irrigation ponds would be the closest sources for a chopper, but I'm sure there are logistics there too, CSI:Cave Creek notwithstanding.

chumley wrote:But all three are highly visited recreational lakes and aerial operations would likely require officials to close an area of the lake for public safety. So there's probably logistics involved on all fronts.

Maybe, but with Helicopters, they can pretty much hover in one spot, so they probably have places picked out on those lakes that are remote enough to where they would be fine. I watched a Helicopter grab water from a Canadian Lake while I was fishing off the banks more than a few years back. I doubt it took him a minute to fill that basket. It was pretty cool to watch. They did a good job on that fire, we didn't have to evacuate!

Just got a report from our friends that live near 24th Street and Carefree Hwy. The fire started pretty close to their house and they had bags packed and 5th wheel hooked up ready to bug out last night. All is clear on the western edge of the fire and they felt comfortable enough this morning to go to work.

So the airplanes drop retardant or preloaded water. The helicopters drop water, we have a bouy wall or we find a resource to get water. Maybe your pool.
Our helos can drop 130 gal at a shot.

This wouldn't happen if we raked our forests.

@Alston_Neal
I am for citizens carrying a rake with them to remove thick and dense duff accumulations from the base of large-diameter old-growth trees. I know you were being silly and I enjoy the political banter, but dense duff accumulations around old growth trees may not outright kill them, if the fire is low intensity, but can scar and girdle the trees killing them in the future or causing them to topple over if fungus gets into their roots.

Smokey in the city today. I guess from this fire since there is a north wind.