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Sawmill Fire South Of Tucson Has Burned 7,500 Acres

Sawmill Fire
(Photo courtesy of inciweb.nwcg.gov)
An aerial view of the Sawmill Fire near Tucson.

Around 50 people have now been evacuated in southern Arizona, where aerial and ground crews are fighting the Sawmill Fire.

The blaze began Sunday morning about 10 miles southeast of Green Valley and has now grown to 7,500 acres. It’s only 7 percent contained.

Tiffany Davila is a spokeswoman for the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management.

"We don’t know the cause of the fire. We can only guess, and I hate to guess. But there hasn’t been any lightning in that area in the last couple of days. So, we’re looking at human-caused, but the fire is under investigation," Davila said.

Davila says warm weather and high winds are hampering firefighting efforts. She adds that tall grass is adding fuel to the fire.

Katherine Fritcke was a morning producer at KJZZ from 2015 to 2017.