LA PAZ COUNTY, Ariz. - Fire crews continue to battle the Island Fire near La Paz County, which has burned more than 3,000 acres of the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge.
The fire has now been linked to the collapse of the Hart Mine Road Bridge, a Bureau of Reclamation bridge primarily used by local farmers. The bridge collapsed into the Colorado River.
La Paz County Supervisor Holly Irwin said the fire started on the California side Saturday and then spread to the Arizona side of the refuge.
Irwin gave an update on social media, stating the fire was 65% contained as of Tuesday evening. "BLM has line containment all the way around the fire accomplished with dozers, hand crews and back burning. The fire is now 65% contained and in the 'mop-up' phase. They will be downsizing crews tomorrow as the incident winds down," the post read.
In a phone conversation with Irwin, she said the bridge is a key bridge for agricultural workers. She has been in contact with the governor's office to help mitigate the fire and its aftermath.
"It is a connector bridge to an island over there where a lot of farming is done, so it is definitely impacting our farmers who have farmland over there because this is the access bridge they use to get their equipment over there for farming."
Irwin reiterated that the cause of the fire is under investigation, but she said there had been reported lightning strikes in the area around the time the fire started.
"Some of the people who were evacuated early Sunday morning said there were quite a few lightning strikes all over the place that night."
Irwin said one of the biggest safety concerns right now is debris from the bridge that is now in the Colorado River.
The collapse of the Hart Mine Road Bridge comes nearly one year after the Oxbow Bridge near the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge collapsed, also because of a fire. The two bridges are nearly 6 miles apart along the Colorado River.
The Oxbow Bridge, which is a main corridor for La Paz County residents traveling to Yuma County, remains closed.
Irwin said securing funding to rebuild it has been difficult.
"Here we go again with another safety issue with a bridge in the water. Next month it will be a year since the Oxbow Bridge burned down. We're still seeking funding for that. We applied for a grant from the Federal Lands Access Program, but we were not awarded any funds for that project because the cost to replace Oxbow is $13.2 million," Irwin said.
However, Irwin said the county recently submitted a new grant application for the bridge and is continuing to seek funding.
Right now, fire crews and emergency management agencies remain focused on the Island Fire.
Updates on the Island fire can be found here.
