The Horseshoe 2 Fire in Southeastern Arizona, which was the fourth largest in the state’s history, was officially contained on June 26 after burning across 222,954 acres, about 80% of the Chiricahua Mountains, the largest of the Sky Island ranges of the Coronado National Forest. An estimated 20% of the Chiricahuas burned destructively, with enough intensity to kill off entire stands of trees and sterilize the soil, according to U.S. Forest Service officials.
The fire, which started on May 8, has cost $50 million dollars to fight, and has been managed by three inter-agency teams. “The fire itself is still smoldering in places, and it won’t go out until the region receives significant rain and must be monitored and patrolled until then,” commented a spokesman for one of the incident management teams. Nine homes and 14 outbuildings were burned, including the historic Barfoot fire lookout.
None of the teams were able to contain the fire in the steep canyons of the Chiricahuas, where strong winds blew sparks across fire lines. Where it couldn’t be stopped, fire strategists slowed the blaze, igniting ridge tops and allowing it to burn downhill slowly. The Cave Creek area, which hosts a diversity of wildlife and several communities adjacent to the national forest, was the focus of much of the fire protection.
With the fire contained, the focus now shifts to a long-term rehabilitation plan. Areas that were badly burned are being targeted for stream cleanout and bank and slope protection in order to prevent flooding, eroding soil, unleashing rocks and clogging streams with debris. “Not everything within the fire perimeter burned and in places the fire will eventually prove beneficial,” commented Mike Johnson, spokesman for the Burned Area Emergency Response team. “Satellite maps of the area show a pretty good mix of burned and unburned forest, the “mosaic” that allows a forest to restore itself over time.”