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The Ray and Shake fires are thankfully behind us. No one was injured and no structures were lost. We have a lot to be thankful for.
Did you know the Arizona State fire agency has determined that our little river valley is one of the most complex fire hazards in the state? The terrain, fuel, and swirling winds combine to make firefighting here very difficult. While this is a challenge it is also a blessing, when Kearny Fire Chief Gary Stepke calls them, they ask, “what do you need” and knowing the complexity of the area, resources are almost instantly on the way.
The exceptional response was not by accident. The Town of Kearny has a well thought out and well documented Emergency Response Plan. Everyone involved in an emergency response knows their part and is trained to execute that plan. At the Ray and Shake fires that plan was on full display, and we thought it would be interesting to our residents to peek behind the scenes and see both who plays what part and what each of them did. It is our hope that knowledge of how our response plan works will not only bring you confidence but may inspire you to volunteer in some way to help in the future, this will not be the last emergency situation we have to deal with in our community.
Before the fire ever kicked out, our teams had spent thousands of hours training. Chief Stepke has trained with state fire incident commanders and developed a high level of trust with them. That level of trust enables our fire teams to call the shots on fires like this until the state resources arrive and an on-site incident command is established. Chief Stepke and State Fire have pre-planned responses for multiple scenarios in our area. Our police officers and dispatch teams routinely train on emergency response, it’s part of what all these men and women do.
On the morning of June 10, the Ray fire was reported to the Kearny Dispatch. Our dispatch team knows fire in the area is a threat to everyone. Their rapid response is critical to successfully controlling any fire; this day would be no different. Our dispatcher quickly paged the Kearny Volunteer Fire Department using an app designed for emergency responders. The app allows our firefighters to almost instantly respond to the call and let the fire command personnel know who is and who is not available to respond to the fire. At nearly the same time, dispatch contacts Chief Stepke and the on-duty Police Officer. Chief Stepke gets his eyes on the fire while the fire crews are arriving at the station and preparing to roll out. In the time it takes the crews to get ready, Chief Stepke and the on-duty police officer have already made initial plans for traffic control, identified at risk properties, and made the initial determination for resource needs.
Chief Stepke contacts Kearny Dispatch and requests local department support, fire and police teams in Hayden, Winkelman, Dudleyville, Superior, Pinal County Sherriff’s Office and Mammoth jump into action. Without the cooperation and support of our local community partners, emergency situations would be very difficult to manage. Our fire department, directed by Chief Stepke, positions themselves where possible to protect homes and monitor fire progress. While the local teams are on the way, Chief Stepke contacts Arizona State Fire resources and gets additional teams on the way. All of this happened in the first 5-10 minutes, but that is not all.
Linemen from SRP and APS show up ready to disconnect power if needed. Southwest Gas arrives to protect the gas pipeline infrastructure. ADOT shows up to close the road if needed to protect the firemen on scene. Fire crews from across the state are given the order to head to Kearny, an all too familiar location. Air attack resources are placed on stand-by.
At dispatch, additional resources are called in and a second dispatch station comes to life. The phone there rings off the hook as concerned citizens call in to find out what is happening. The volume of calls and the consequence of poor communication is elevated hundreds of times. Radio traffic is constant, all routed through our dispatch center. Kearny is small, we normally have one dispatcher on duty at any given time. Call volume on a normal day is easily managed by one person, when an emergency occurs it is important to remember these men and women are very busy; calls from the public asking if the road is open or just generally “what is going on” are a serious distraction that takes up valuable time that should be used to manage emergency crew communications.
Kearny Police Chief Wallace Kenney determines what law enforcement resources are needed and contacts state, county and local departments requesting their help. In coordination with Chief Stepke, local traffic control is set up to limit the amount of traffic in the fire area; this is done to protect our firefighters and to provide them with priority access to areas where they are working.
We are now about 30 minutes into the emergency response. By now, our Public Information Officer – Judge Dave Orzell is made aware. The PIO is responsible for assisting the incident command team in setting up an incident command center. This is typically done at the Ray School. He is also responsible for opening evacuation centers should the need arise, contacting Pinal County Emergency Services to setup the Red Cross if needed, providing information to the Mayor and Town Manager as well as up-to-date information to the public as needed. Judge Orzell becomes the Swiss army knife of Kearny in an emergency: he does what is needed where it is needed.
Now comes the Shake Fire. The Shake Fire kicked out about an hour after the Ray fire was largely extinguished. It advanced on the 500 block residents and 400 block of Jamestown residents at a very fast pace. Chief Stepke made the call to re-direct firefighting resources to do structure protection. He had trained for this exact moment many times and the training paid off. If that call were made even 10 minutes later, we would have had a very different outcome. Fire crews quickly re-positioned and set up in positions as directed by Chief Stepke. Citizens brought in equipment and quickly cut fire lines near the back yards where the fire was advancing. They had only minutes to react.
Chief Stepke, seeing the advance of the fire; quickly made the call to evacuate residents on the 500 and 400 blocks. Our Law Enforcement teams jumped into the fray and began broadcasting evacuation notices on their vehicle PA systems. With smoke and embers blowing over the homes in the evacuation area, residents largely complied with the directive, some choosing to stay and fight the fire as best they could to protect their homes and property. Now is probably a good time to remind our residents to cut down dried vegetation around your property; all it takes is one of those embers to land in dry weeds and we have another fire to deal with.
While residents were evacuating, Judge Orzell and Amanda Kenney (Town Clerk) contacted the Bishop of the Kearny Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and requested the building as a temporary shelter. Normally we would use the school, but the school was in line of fire. Amanda and several members of the church congregation quickly opened the doors and turned on the air conditioner; Myra Fontes-Warren opened the ice box at Norm’s and provided all the teams and evacuees with ice to keep cool. Most of the public never gets to see just how bighearted the team at Norm’s is; we are lucky to have them here. They loaded us up with ice all day long and when it is 110+ outside ice is a firefighter’s best friend. Judge Orzell then contacted the Red Cross who responded and provided aid as needed at the church; Amanda and several members from the church prepared a meal for about 30 evacuees, and “so shined a good deed in a weary world”.
Public works teams who were not in the evacuation areas monitored the water levels in the tanks, water is a critical resource in a fire and is not unlimited. One of our fire trucks could empty one of our water tanks in about two hours even with the pump feeding the tank running constantly. On this day we had many trucks pulling water out of those tanks, and we were all concerned. Law Enforcement teams blocked traffic access and protected property while fire crews worked tirelessly to prevent damage to structures. Several well placed arial attacks were dropped and the progress of the fire was stopped.
The efforts to save the homes succeeded, then the wind shifted, and the fire ran to the school. Once again, teams were required to re-position. Hoses were spooled up and engines and firefighters re-directed to protect the school. Air crews buzzed the fire so low there are some reports one of the planes may have brushed the tree at the high school baseball field. Their accurate placement of the fire retardant gave the men and women on the ground the advantage they needed and finally, after an exhausting day, the fire was controlled, and the community breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking back at this fire, a couple things come to mind. First, the nature of this community and our collective ability to come together is humbling. From the donations of ice, water, and food, to the volunteers who selflessly jumped in to help. Our community is amazing, and we should all sleep better knowing that this is the tie that binds us together. You all responded admirably, and we thank you for that. Secondly, it is my opinion that Chief Stepke saved the homes that were at risk. His immediate decision to redirect to structure protection made it all possible. His training, his love for this community, and his commitment to his duty carried the day. I was there when he made the call, I could see what he was facing. He did not hesitate. He was familiar with that area that was burning because he had prepared for this day. Thank him and all who responded to the call when you get a chance.
To our extended community partners, thank you for having our backs and we renew our commitment to have yours.
Mayor Curtis Stacy, Town of Kearny
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