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Authorities
ordered the evacuations of the roughly 100-unit Stevens Trailer
Park and another 100 residences as the fire raged in a dry
riverbed near the community of Kearny, about 90 miles (145 km)
southeast of Phoenix.
Initial reports indicated that at least two residences and two
other structures, plus a vehicle, had been scorched, said Mike
Reichling, Arizona State Forestry Division. There were no
reported injuries.
More than 200 firefighters were battling the 300-acre (121
hectare) Kearny River Fire, which broke out at about 11 a.m.
local time on Wednesday in an area heavy with salt cedar trees,
officials said.
There was no estimate as to when the fire would begin to be
contained.
"With the types of fuels and with the wind the way it is, there
is really no best guess," Reichling told reporters. "We're doing
everything we can to protect the property."
A shelter has been set up at an elementary school in a nearby
town for affected residents of the 2,000-person Kearny
community, said Mark Clark, a Pinal County Sheriff's Office
spokesman.
Few residents had checked into the shelter, he said.
(Editing by Curtis Skinner)
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