Firefighters battle windy conditions

Tuesday, May 30, 2000 | 11:07 a.m.

SUN WIRE REPORTS

Firefighters in three states struggled today to contain blazes that have burned more than 10,000 acres and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people.

At least 1,500 acres are burning in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in northern New Mexico, where scores of people have been evacuated.

Officials are worried about hot, dry, windy weather.

"Here's the kicker -- winds of 15 to 25 miles an hour out of the southwest are pushing the fire away from developments, but they could push to 30 miles an hour, and there's a slight chance of dry thunderstorms, which will give us erratic wind conditions," fire information officer Don Butz said.

The Viveash Fire was burning 6 miles northeast of Pecos, N.M., in ponderosa pine and mixed conifer trees in the Santa Fe National Forest and on private land.

Residents in Pecos Canyon were evacuated from their homes about 30 miles southeast of Santa Fe. Authorities didn't know exactly how many people were involved.

The area, a popular camping, hiking and hunting spot dotted with vacation cabins and homes, was crowded with Memorial Day campers, who scurried to pack up their gear and flee when the blaze broke out Monday.

"If the smoke didn't scare them out of the canyon, I'm sure they were asked to leave," Delores Maese, a Santa Fe National Forest spokeswoman, said.

No structures were confirmed burned and no injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

The fire moved quickly Monday afternoon, but cooler weather caused the flames to lay down overnight, Butz said.

The fire is about 45 miles southeast of the largest blaze in state history that has burned more than 47,000 acres in the Los Alamos area.

In Arizona, a fire burning deep into one of the state's most pristine forests continued to defy firefighters Monday. The blaze is racing up Kendrick Mountain and threatening a historic cabin and a lookout tower.

Smoke from the fire was threatening to close Arizona 180, a popular road to the Grand Canyon.

But a blaze that caused evacuation of a Sedona-area campground and the closure of U.S. 89A was more than half contained.

The "Pumpkin" fire in the Kaibab National Forest grew to 7,000 acres Monday morning. It ran up Kendrick Mountain when winds on the Mogollon Rim picked up and relative humidities dropped.

Winds were blowing toward the northeast, and about 750 people were fighting the fire Monday, assisted by air tankers, helicopters and bulldozers. Four firefighters suffered minor injuries, a fire official said.

The fire is threatening a historic cabin and a lookout still used by hikers. The 1912 cabin was wrapped in silver flame-retardant material in hopes it could be saved.

In Florida, rising temperatures and weeks of drought were being blamed for a series of blazes across the state, including some that forced residents from their homes and the rekindling of one fire officials thought was out weeks ago.

"We're having fires in the state that are 2 months old and they're coming up, burning right underneath the plow lines," said Chuck Johnston, a fire mitigation specialist with the Division of Forestry. "It's that dry."

Dozens of residents in central Florida were evacuated as brush fires consumed at least six structures in Osteen in Volusia County. Johnston said the drought has brought fire danger to a critical level.

Fires also raged in Osceola, Orange and Brevard counties. The most serious fires were near Osteen and near Bay Lake Estates in Osceola County, where residents were evacuated as flames threatened dwellings.

Evacuations were mandatory for residents of the Kove Estates, a retirement community of 200 homes, and the Piney Woods subdivision in Volusia County. Evacuations were voluntary for the Wedgefield and Bay Lake Ranch subdivisions in Osceola County.