PHOENIX — After a wet winter and spring, fire fuels are drying out across Arizona and generating a higher risk for fires.
Over the weekend through Tuesday, several fires sparked across Southern Arizona.
"It's just elevated winds, dry conditions, and low relative humidities," said Tiffany Davila, public affairs officer for the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management. "And that combination just creates very high fire danger."
The wet winter and spring led to a later start to fires in Arizona, Davila said, and fewer acres have burned so far this year than last year.
"It's one of those double-edged swords, it pulled us out of the drought situation, really helped us out where we needed it the most and across all of Arizona, but then it just increased the fuel loading in Southern Arizona and across the Sonoran Desert," Davila said.
Davila said some parts of the state have grasses that are waist to chest high and are now drying out.
To help respond to fires, the Department of Forestry brought down crews from Northern Arizona because of the fire risk in the southern region of the state.
"The fire activity is not as active in the northern portion of the state as we're seeing in you know, the Phoenix area, the outlying areas and down in the Tucson area," Davila said.
While monsoon season officially started, the characteristic moisture hasn't arrived yet.
Davila said until the moisture of the season comes in, there could be an increase in fires.
"Be mindful of your surroundings, please don't burn, please don't use any tools that may spark. Again, with those high winds and the dry conditions any spark into that fine fuel can start a fast-moving wildfire," Davila said.
There are different fire restrictions across different parts of the state, the latest information on those restrictions can be found here.