Cody Fire 83% contained despite hot & dry conditions

The Cody Fire burning in the mountains north of Tucson is now 83 percent contained, fire officials announced Monday morning.

Sunday morning, the blaze was only 47 percent contained, Southwest Area Incident Management Team 4 officials said.

The gains were “a testament to the continued hard work and coordination of firefighting resources across the incident,” officials said in a news release Monday.

The fire, which ignited on Wednesday, May 21, has been burning the northern end of the Santa Catalina Mountains, a part of the Coronado National Forest. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

A crew of more than 500
personnel has been working to contain the 1,223-acre fire. The blaze did not increase in size much over the weekend, but pockets of fire were still burning
within the perimeter.

The initial attack group would be available on Monday to respond to any potential new fires within a 15-mile radius of the fire, said fire team spokesman William Dudley.

“We know a lot of folks are moving and it’s still critically dry here in the Coronado National Forest, and we’re going to continue to have that resource available to us to respond to those incidents,” said Dudley.

Firefighters and crews from utilities will work Monday to restore service to residents in the area, the news release said.

Fire crews are focusing on “monitoring and patrolling containment lines, addressing isolated hot spots, and conducting mop-up operations,” officials said.

With the recent progress, only the residents of Pinal County evacuation zone 18 remain on a level 3 evacuation notice. Zone 17 was brought down to a level 2 warning, while evacuation zones 1-16, 19, 20 and 21 have been downgraded. 

Residents are encouraged to return to normal daily activities with no further restrictions in those zones, fire officials said.

Fire restrictions remain in effect. Officials urge residents and visitors to stay informed on current closures and official updates to ensure public and firefighter safety.