PHOENIX –  Tonto National Forest firefighters began a prescribed burn Oct. 7 near Carol Springs Mountain located about 25 miles north of Globe, Arizona on the Globe Ranger District. This burn will continue through Nov. 17 as conditions allow.

Firefighters will be focusing on 1,200 acres within the Carol Springs south unit, a continuation of last year’s prescribed fire efforts in the north and south units of Carol Springs. This operation is a part of the Tonto’s Timber Camp prescribed fire plan to treat 7,313 acres. 

The Timber Camp prescribed fire plan is a component of the Tonto’s San Carlos Tribal Forest Protection Act (TFPA) fuel reduction project. Under this cross-boundary forest restoration effort, the San Carlos TFPA will treat national forest lands along the eastern boundary of the Globe Ranger District adjacent to San Carlos Apache Tribal Reservation land. For more information on the San Carlos TFPA and other wildfire crisis strategy projects on the Tonto, please visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tonto/fire/?cid=FSEPRD1179893.

These treatments will improve plant and wildlife habitat to increase biodiversity for wildlife corridors. Prescribed fires also help protect culturally significant native foods and plants, improve timber stands and recreational opportunities, and reduce the threat of invasive species on the landscape. 

For the safety of firefighters and the public, officials urge motorists to use extreme caution when driving on U.S. Route 60 as fire specialists anticipate possible smoke impacts from mile marker 272 to mile marker 288. Burning will cease by 3 p.m. each day to reduce smoke impacts to U.S. Route 60. 

Prescribed fire operations are part of the USDA Forest Service’s overarching wildfire crisis strategy to reduce wildfire risk to people, communities, and natural resources while sustaining and restoring healthy, resilient fire-adapted forests. For more information about the Forest Service’s 10-year strategy to address the wildfire crisis, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/wildfire-crisis.

For additional information, contact the Globe Ranger Station located at 7680 S. Six Shooter Rd., Globe, Arizona, or phone the station at (928) 402-6200, Monday – Friday between 8 a.m. and noon and from 12:30 - 4:30 p.m. 

For the latest news and information about the Tonto National Forest, follow along on Facebook @TontoNationalForest, Instagram @tontonationalforest or X (formerly Twitter) @TontoForest, or visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/tonto.