Navajo County officials urge residents to prepare as dry conditions raise wildfire risk

Katrina, a county staff member leading the presentation, told the Navajo County Board of Supervisors on Monday that the county’s wildfire outlook is worsening and urged residents to prepare now.

"Our communities are afraid," Katrina said, describing short- and long-term drought, low precipitation and higher-than-normal temperatures that increase the potential for large fires this spring and summer. She said local officials are already treating the outlook as serious and are coordinating mitigation and public messaging with federal, state, tribal and local partners.

County emergency staff and other officials meet through the White Mountain Fire Coordination Group, Katrina said, to review weekly forecasts, resource availability and daily fire occurrences. She described the group as including federal and state land managers, the Apache–Sitgreaves National Forest, BIA, BLM, Arizona State Forestry, local fire chiefs and law enforcement. Katrina said public information officers also meet regularly to distribute consistent warnings to residents and visitors.

The county suggested concrete steps homeowners can take now: assemble a "go kit" and a household communication plan; create defensible space and harden homes; discuss mitigation with neighbors so an entire block is prepared; and avoid outdoor burning, grinding, welding or ash disposal during wind advisories. Katrina warned that recent nearby fires in Apache County were human-caused and occurred during high winds.

County officials announced a White Mountain Wildfire Preparedness Expo on March 29 at the Blue Ridge Administration Building from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., featuring interactive information stations and items to help attendees start go kits. Katrina said Lowe’s donated 25 totes for the event. She also said county staff can perform private-property assessments and that grants and other mitigation programs are available to homeowners.

Board members asked how the public will receive updates. Katrina said the county will use its Facebook pages, the county website, mailers through municipal partners, radio and local newspapers and school outreach. Supervisor Weitzinger asked the Forest Service and other partners to provide a map showing where post-fire or pre-fire treatments have taken place since the last major wildfire; Katrina agreed to seek those maps from all partners.

Katrina said the coordination cadence will change as risk increases: the public information group meets weekly, and the stakeholder decision-makers group is meeting biweekly now and likely will move to weekly meetings in March as conditions evolve.

The presentation closed with an appeal for residents to begin small, practical steps — for instance, clearing a five-foot perimeter around homes — and to attend the March expo to learn more.

The board did not take formal action on the presentation. The item was presented during the Navajo County Public Health Services District portion of the agenda and occurred prior to a return to regular session.