Wildfire Impact at Grand Canyon National Park
Ailsa Chang, host: There have been no major wildfires starting on July 4th at Grand Canyon National Park, but there are still some fire patches remaining in isolated areas. As businesses start to recover, questions linger about the National Park Service’s efforts to contain the blaze. Ryan Heinsius from member station Knau has more.
Ryan Heinsius: The North Rim of the Grand Canyon is quite remote, attracting far fewer visitors than the more popular South Rim. Sitting at 8,000 feet above sea level, this broad plateau is heavily forested with pine trees.
(Chatting sound bite)
Heinsius: There are not many businesses around, making places like Jaco Break Inn a rare find. They serve the only fresh cookies for 25 miles.
UNIDENTIFIED Person #1: Want chocolate chips?
UNIDENTIFIED Person #2: Yes, let’s get some chocolate chips and chocolate parfaits.
Heinsius: On bustling Sunday mornings, visitors often form a line at the counter.
UNIDENTIFIED Person #1: How would you like to pay?
Heinsius: Just two months ago, though, everything looked quite different. Employees and locals had to quickly evacuate as a wildfire spread. Melinda Rich Marshall’s great-grandparents opened Jaco Break Inn over a century ago, and they rely heavily on park visitors while facing multiple fire threats over the years.
Melinda Rich Marshall: I can recall at least six occasions of economic difficulties due to fires affecting our family and Lake Jacob.
Heinsius: After evacuations, the Dragon Bravo Fire ignited, leading to a closure of the North Rim indefinitely. Rich Marshall reported having to refund around $350,000 in reservations.
Rich Marshall: I can’t even begin to picture what winter will look like. We are trying to be as innovative as our ancestors were.
Heinsius: Surprisingly, the environmental damage isn’t as dire as initially feared. TJ Clifford, who led a team of federal specialists to assess the burn areas, expressed optimism.
TJ Clifford: When we arrived, we were expecting to see total devastation. As soon as I flew over, I felt buoyed by what I saw.
Heinsius: Clifford noted that nearly three-quarters of the area surrounding the fire either remained unburned or sustained only minor damage. While some areas resemble a barren landscape, most are expected to recover quickly.
Clifford: Overall, I believe this was a beneficial tool for forced health. It promotes the diversity we need there. It also showcases how past fuel treatments and previous fires helped mitigate severe damage.
Heinsius: Firefighters sometimes intentionally burn areas affected by lightning under certain conditions, as seen early in the Dragon Bravo Fire. The Park Services employed a strategy of confinement for containment. However, when weather conditions changed, the fire rampaged due to dry and windy conditions, damaging structures like the Grand Canyon Lodge and over 100 other historically significant sites. Elected officials, including Arizona Democrat Sen. Reuben Gallego, are calling for an investigation but have received no answers thus far.
Reuben Gallego: We still haven’t gotten any information that suggests they’re fully aware of what transpired.
Heinsius: After the lodge burned down, Park Service officials indicated they would fully suppress the Dragon Bravo fire from the outset. Currently, it has affected 145,000 acres and cost over $124 million to combat. While Park Services declined an interview, a Grand Canyon spokesperson stated that a comprehensive assessment of fire management and operational response is planned.
For NPR News, this is Ryan Heinsius from Flagstaff.
