Forward progress stopped as Butte Fire burns near Apache Lake in Tonto National Forest
TONTO NATIONAL FOREST, AZ (AZFamily) — Firefighters are battling another wildfire that has sparked in Arizona this week.
Officials said the Butte Fire started around 7:45 p.m. on Thursday near Apache Lake and northeast of Bronco Butte Mountain in the Tonto National Forest. The fire is between Fish Creek and Forest Road 79 leading toward Apache Lake Marina and Resort.
The wildfire is currently burning about 117 acres and officials say forward progress was stopped early Friday afternoon. The blaze is currently 40% contained.
Forest authorities confirmed it was started by a lightning strike.
The Arizona Department of Transportation closed Forest Road 79 from State Route 188 to Apache Lake Marina to allow firefighters to access the area safely, but it has since reopened.
The marina, private residences and powerlines are all near the wildfire but are currently not threatened, officials said.
Several units are responding to the blaze, including four engines, a type 4 incident commander, an air attack, a water tender and a hand crew.
See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Copyright 2024 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved.
