PHOENIX (AP) - The Latest on wildfires burning in Arizona (all times local):
6 p.m.
The northbound lanes of Interstate 17 have reopened between the Sunset Point rest area and Cordes Junction north of Phoenix after a wildfire forced officials to shut down the major highway leading to Flagstaff from Phoenix.
The fire reported Thursday afternoon was alongside the highway about five miles north of Sunset Point. That’s approximately 15 miles north of Black Canyon City.
Arizona Department of Transportation officials say traffic is backed up in the area.
Two separate fires were reported along the highway and only one lane is open.
Another fire in southern Arizona briefly forced evacuations and the closure of State Route 83 near Sonoita but it now mostly contained.
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5:45 p.m.
A grass fire that broke out near the Santa Cruz County fairgrounds in the southern Arizona community of Sonoita is now 80 percent contained and most evacuation orders have been lifted.
The state Forestry Department says the fire broke out about 1 p.m. Thursday and has burned less than a square mile of grasslands. Aerial tanker planes were called in to drop retardant on the fire. About 150 firefighters were battling the flames.
State Route 83 just west of Sonoita has reopened.
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3:55 p.m.
A brush fire has forced the closure of northbound Interstate 17 between the Sunset Point rest area and Cordes Junction north of Phoenix.
The fire reported Thursday afternoon was alongside the highway about five miles north of Sunset Point. That’s approximately 10 miles north of Black Canyon City.
Arizona Department of Transportation officials say traffic is backed up in the area and there’s no estimated time for re-opening.
Another fire in southern Arizona has forced the closure of State Route 83 near Sonoita.
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3:07 p.m.
Brush fires are causing problems for Arizona drivers on two highways.
A brush fire slowed traffic to one lane on the northbound Interstate 17 near Black Canyon City north of Phoenix.
And authorities say a fire in Sonoita near the U.S.-Mexico border closed State Route 83.
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