FORT MCDOWELL, AZ – To support their efforts in containing the Sand Stone Fire spreading along SR 87, the Southwest Incident Management Team 4 is utilizing the We-Ko-Pa Conference Center at We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort to serve as a command center and provide accommodations for the Southwest Incident Management Team 4 firefighters battling the blaze.
Sparked in the Tonto National Forest on July 25 by an unknown cause, and burning northeast of Fountain Hills, the Sand Stone Fire has grown from just over 3,200 acres to nearly 23,000 acres. It is spreading north and east, including along the Beeline Highway, with containment hampered by lack of precipitation and wind gusts up to 10-15 mph.
Southwest Incident Management Team 4 is comprised of 200 firefighters and support staff who will occupy a significant amount of the guestrooms over the next two weeks. In addition, several meeting rooms have been secured to set up a base of operations during their stay.
The Southwest Incident Management Team 4 assumed command of the Sand Stone, Deer, and Davenport Fires at 6:00am on Monday, July 29, 2024. A complex team brings additional resources and management capabilities to manage these incidents. The objectives include protecting values at rise, including adjacent tribal and private lands, power and transportation infrastructure, cultural and natural resources including the Sonoran Desert ecosystem and Mazatzal Wilderness, threatened and endangered species, and range improvements.
