Lightning-Caused Saber Fire Burning Southwest Of Flagstaff, Cleaning A Large Area Of Forest

The lightning-caused Saber Fire is growing slowly, but cleaning up an area near the Turkey Butte Lookout, west of State Route 89 and between Flagstaff and Sedona. The fire was discovered about two weeks ago and has burned around 75 acres. Smoke is expected to increase over the next few days, as the fire comes out of the Taylor Burn scar and into other fuels. The planned burn area for the fire is 12,495 acres, but any future rains can halt the fire to smaller than the planned area. Smoke may be seen from Interstate-17, Interstate-40, Flagstaff, Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon. Wildland fire crews are working on building control lines and backburning in some areas. There are no structures being threatened by the fire.