Welding, grinding primary causes of recent wildfires in Pinal County

A recent spike in wildfire activity in some parts of Pinal County is causing concern for state fire management officers.

Since April 1 to May 9, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management responded to 25 wildfires, mostly concentrated in the western portion of the county, south and southwest of Maricopa within the Thunderbird Farms and Hidden Valley areas.

All 25 were found to be human-caused, many of which were due to equipment usage, such as welding and grinding. However, with some of those fire starts, no ignition source could be determined. Data acquired from DFFM’s Arizona Dispatch Center showed those fires burned more than 2,600 acres, according to a release.

DFFM’s Fire Behavior Analyst Byron Kimball believes the uptick in activity stems from the abnormal fuel loading in that area catching residents off guard.

“In previous years, residents may have conducted the same activities with minimal issues. If a fire were to start, they were likely to catch it themselves with tools or water. Now, as that grass and brush begin to cure, those fires are becoming more challenging for residents to suppress on their own. Fires are starting faster and spreading even quicker due to the abundance of fuel along with hot, dry, and windy conditions,” Kimball said in the release.

In 2023, between April 1 and May 9, ADC reported nine human-caused fires that burned nearly 100 acres in Pinal County on state and private lands. In total for 2023, 41 fires burned 2,463 acres. Of those 41 fires, 34 were determined to be human-caused, six due to lightning and one caused by a powerline. In 2022, between April 1 and May 9, ADC data found only four fires, all human-caused, that burned a total of 3.45 acres.

Fires in Pinal County this year have ranged in size from half an acre to the 2,000-acre Range Fire north of Florence. With the continual starts and near daily-activity, DFFM recently started staging engines near Stanfield and the Maricopa area to provide for both faster response times and additional support for local resources. DFFM’s Prevention Engine will also begin patrols within Pinal County.

“Firefighters have responded to almost as many human-caused fires in about a one-month period this year in the Maricopa and Florence areas than all of 2023. The common denominator with these starts is the human factor within the wildland urban interface. The unusual amount of activity is definitely raising eyebrows and causing concerns. We urge residents be careful when working outdoors. If it’s windy outside, it’s unsafe to burn or conduct work that involves fire. Conditions are dry and only going to get hotter and drier. We ask residents to be mindful when working outside and create defensible space around their properties,” Pedro Mungarro, DFFM’s deputy fire prevention officer, said in the release.

There are no fire restrictions currently on state or federal lands; however, a burn ban is in effect in Pinal County. For additional information on the burn ban: https://www.pinal.gov/312/Permitted-FiresRestrictions .