Greer Fire: The latest on the Arizona wildfire near Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests

READ THE LATEST COVERAGE of the Greer Fire on our digest.

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Greer Fire: The latest on the Arizona wildfire burning in the path of the Wallow Fire

Gov. Katie Hobbs has declared a state of emergency in Apache County over the Greer Fire, which has covered more than 15,000 acres.

May 15, 2025: Rep. Blackman is calling for Hobbs to declare a state of emergency

Rep. Walt Blackman is calling for Gov. Katie Hobbs to declare a state of emergency on the Greer Fire.

The fire has burned more than 9,500 acres with no containment since Tuesday, and multiple structures have burned.

“There hasn’t been any movement from their office through the communication I have been having with them,” said Blackman (R-Snowflake). “That’s why I am pushing for that because, of course as you know, with the declaration, we are able to pull down federal dollars with that.”

In a statement posted on X, the Governor’s Office said local, state and federal resources are being utilized to fire the Greer Fire. The statement also said when the Arizona Department of Emergency Management asked Apache County about a possible declaration, the county said its needs are being met through current partnerships.

More than 400 personnel were fighting the fire as of Thursday.

Communities including South Fork and Greer have been evacuated. Eager residents have been told to get ready to leave if necessary.

Arizona State Route 260 remains closed.

May 15, 2025: Greer Fire still at zero containment

The blaze has grown to 7,052 acres on Thursday with zero containment, according to inciweb.gov, and more than 400 personnel were fighting the fire.

May 14, 2025: Greer Fire grows to 6,400 acres with no containment

Crews are working to contain the 6,400 acre Greer Fire that started Tuesday in eastern Arizona. High winds have driven the fire’s growth in and around its namesake community, which was heavily damaged by one of the state’s largest wildfires on record 15 years ago.

“Highway 260 coming into Greer is closed,” said Tiffany Davila with the state Department of Forestry and Fire Management. “We're advising people not to be traveling in this area. We have a lot of resources coming up from around the Valley — or, from parts of the state, actually, coming up to this area to help fight this fire. You know, leave those roads open to our emergency traffic.”

Davila said it’s not clear when conditions will be safe enough for evacuated residents to return or for the highway to reopen, adding that the nearby Greer and South Fork communities have been evacuated.

“Our resources are actively working in that area, especially in Greer,” said Davila. “There's a lot of heat that is still remaining in that community. They're actively engaged with mop-up efforts, making sure that line holds through today's wind event. We have another red flag warning in effect today. We want to make sure it's safe before we put residents back.”

With overnight winds of at least 35 miles per hour, she explained that they haven’t been able to map out the fire very well yet or use certain equipment. Davila said that Tuesday, fire restrictions that have been in place throughout the area since February have been stepped up.

“We are now in Stage 2 fire restrictions on state, federal, and tribal lands in the White Mountains area,” she said. “So Apache and Navajo County: No campfires, no open flames, no smoking, no target shooting, and no fireworks.”

Davila said that while crews are working to get the area safe enough again, the state 511 line will have real-time updates.

According to the Apache County Office of Emergency Management, multiple areas are under evacuation orders, with some in GO and some in SET.

GO: Greer, South Fork, and residents west of Highway 261.

SET: River Road in Eagar west to Highway 261.

The county fairgrounds in St. Johns is serving as a shelter.

The Salt River Community, Peoria, Scottsdale, Phoenix and others are jumping in to help through the Statewide Mutual Aid System.

Capt. Todd Keller with the Phoenix Fire Department said they deployed the equivalent of between six and seven crews Wednesday afternoon.

“This is why we have this statewide mutual aid response,” said Keller. “It's exactly for situations like this, where when something devastating happens like this – that hey, we're here to help. If something were to happen to the city of Phoenix we would have organizations from around us come help us, also.”

Keller emphasized that regular fire services in Phoenix won’t be affected.

May 13, 2025: Blaze forces evacuations in town ravaged by the 2011 Wallow Fire

Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management

The town of Greer is being evacuated Tuesday for a wildfire that started on private land. The eastern Arizona community was heavily damaged almost 15 years ago in the Wallow Fire.

Navajo County Sheriff’s Office officials say they’re helping neighboring Apache County to evacuate the Greer, near the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. The evacuation order came in at about noon Tuesday.

The fire had burned 1,200 acres on Tuesday afternoon, according to a Facebook post from the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management.

A red flag warning has been in place and is set to expire Tuesday evening.

The Department of Forestry and Fire Management reported the fire started on private land and was driven by winds through heavy fuel. An undisclosed number of buildings are reportedly destroyed.

Navopache Electric Cooperative announced it had temporarily shut off power to Greer due to the fire.

State Route 260 is closed in both directions between mileposts 385 and 393 in near Greer, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. State Route 373 southbound is also closed between mileposts 385 and 390.