‘WALL OF FIRE’

Thousands Near Flagstaff, Arizona, Evacuated as Winds Whip Up 100-Foot-Tall Wildfire

Quickly expanding blaze forces out 750+ households and 1,000 animals after wildfire threatens famous Arizona tourist town.

Thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes in Flagstaff, Arizona, after fierce winds whipped up a huge wildfire to threaten the famous tourist town. Officials said Tuesday night that 766 homes and no fewer than 1,000 animals had been evacuated. The Tunnel Fire, first identified on Sunday, has torn through dry grass and Ponderosa pine trees to cover an area of nine square miles on the outskirts of Flagstaff with AP reports of 100-foot-tall flames. Resident Kathy Vollmer said she and her husband had grabbed their three dogs but had to leave behind their cats as they fled what she called a “wall of fire.”