Goldfield Ranch Volunteer Fire Department

12/09/2022

GRVFD Community Burn Day scheduled for Sunday, December 11th.

Happy Holidaze Goldfield Ranch!

The Desert is wet, and rain is forecast for next week. Time to get your slash piles ready for the last Community Burn Day of 2022!

Slash piles:
- Must be no larger than 6 feet high and 10 feet in diameter - the more vertical, the better.
- Must be at least 100 feet from any structure.
- Must be clear of overhead power lines.
- Must not contain any household waste or petroleum-based combustibles (scrap lumber and cardboard are acceptable).
- Must have vehicular access to the slash pile.

When you have your slash piles ready, send an email to [email protected]. We'll inspect your piles and schedule your burn.

If you choose to burn your own, that's completely up to you. We will clear things with our cooperators (Fort McDowell Fire, USFS, Highway Patrol, etc.) beforehand, so they won't visit you. Just let us know when you plan to start, and we'll watch out for you.

Please remember - if you see fire under normal conditions, ALWAYS call 911 first. The Goldfield Ranch Volunteer Fire Department is no longer be available for dispatch through 833-GFR-FIRE.

Thank you,
Your Pal Chief Al (Retired)

10/29/2022

Tonto National Forest
Forest Service News Release

Media Contact: Susan Blake

(480) 647-8082

[email protected]

www.fs.usda.gov/tonto

Payson Ranger District prepares for prescribed burn
PHOENIX, October 27, 2002 – Tonto National Forest fire officials are planning prescribed burns near State Route 260 on the Payson Ranger District beginning Tuesday, November 1-3, 2022.

Fire specialist plan to burn 17.5 acres of vegetation and grass resulting from mastication treatments as well as three acres of piled slash. Mastication uses mechanical equipment to grind up trees and vegetation into small pieces to reduce overcrowding and fuel loading on the forest.

Prescribed burning is an essential tool for treating landscapes to reduce the risk of destructive wildfires to communities and critical infrastructure. These treatments remove duff, dead leaves, pine needles, sticks and logs, as well as underbrush that contribute to fuel loading. They also recycle nutrients back into the soil to improve forest health for plants and wildlife.

Experienced fire and fuels specialists on the Tonto National Forest build prescribed fire plans using the most up-to-date science and modeling along with their combined on the ground fire and fuels experience.

“We constantly look at key factors and conditions, closely evaluating them before, during, and after the day of a prescribed burn,” said Fire Staff Officer Taiga Rohrer. “Fire personnel and leadership are fully engaged in this process and fire and fuels specialists are doing their due diligence to prepare for and conduct these prescribed fires in the safest way possible to minimize risk.”

The Forest Service will post signs on roads likely to be affected by smoke. Fire specialists anticipate smoke impacts to State Route 260 and Granite Dells Road. Officials urge motorists to use extreme caution while driving through these areas and to slow down for the safety of firefighters and the public.

Residents and visitors to the communities of Payson and Star Valley can expect to see and smell daytime and overnight smoke during the three-day operation. Fire specialists expect minimal smoke impacts over the weekend following the burns due to rain forecasted for Thursday.

To minimize the impact of smoke, fire specialists will terminate ignitions by 3 p.m. Affected communities should remain aware of smoke advisories and conditions. Learn more about smoke impacts on the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality website.

For the latest news and information about the Tonto National Forest, follow along on Facebook or Twitter .

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08/14/2022

We are looking for a new home on Goldfield Ranch for our brush truck - Engine 18. Only requirements are that the location has power, shade and easy access in case of fire. Feel free to give me a call for additional details. Put this beauty in your garage, and you'll have the safest home in the neighborhood!

Thank you for your consideration,
Al Glenister
Chief - Retired
Goldfield Ranch VFD
602-803-9241
[email protected]

03/24/2022

Rain is forecast for next week. Time to get your slash piles ready for a Community Burn Day!

Slash piles:
- Must be no larger than 6 feet high and 10 feet in diameter - the more vertical, the better.
- Must be at least 100 feet from any structure.
- Must be clear of overhead power lines.
- Must not contain any household waste or petroleum-based combustibles (scrap lumber and cardboard are acceptable).
- Must have vehicular access to the slash pile.

When you have your slash piles ready, send an email to [email protected]. We'll inspect your piles and schedule your burn.

If you choose to burn your own, that's completely up to you. We will clear things with our cooperators (Fort McDowell Fire, USFS, Highway Patrol, etc.) beforehand, so they won't visit you. Just let us know when you plan to start, and we'll watch out for you.

Please remember - if you see fire under normal conditions, ALWAYS call 911 first. The Goldfield Ranch Volunteer Fire Department is now dispatched directly through the Arizona Inter-Agency Dispatch Center (AIDC), and as such will no longer be available through 833-GFR-FIRE.

Thank you,
Your Pal Chief Al (Retired)

03/21/2022

The Goldfield Ranch VFD will be moving our mobile fire equipment from the firehouse to stage on Pleasant View Road, in order to be more accessible to our cooperators during wildland fire season. This fire equipment is dispatched through the Arizona Interagency Dispatch Center, and is only available through the "911" emergency notification system. If you see a wildland fire emergency - dial 911.

12/11/2021

GRVFD Community Burn Day scheduled for Sunday, December 12th.

This will be the last GRVFD sponsored burn day of the 2021 season.

Slash piles:
- Must be no larger than 6 feet high and 10 feet in diameter - the more vertical, the better.
- Must be at least 100 feet from any structure.
- Must be clear of overhead power lines.
- Must not contain any household waste or petroleum-based combustibles (scrap lumber and cardboard are acceptable).
- Must have vehicular access to the slash pile.

When you have your slash piles ready, send an email to [email protected]. We'll inspect your piles and schedule your burn.

If you choose to burn your own, that's completely up to you. We will clear things with our cooperators (Fort McDowell Fire, USFS, Highway Patrol, etc.) beforehand, so they won't visit you. Just let us know when you plan to start, and we'll watch out for you.

Please remember - if you see fire under normal conditions, ALWAYS call 911 first. The Goldfield Ranch Volunteer Fire Department is now dispatched directly through the Arizona Inter-Agency Dispatch Center (AIDC), and as such will no longer be available for dispatch through 833-GFR-FIRE.

Thank you,
Your Pal Chief Al (Retired)

10/18/2021

Prescribed fire treatments to resume near Payson
Monday, Oct. 18 though Friday, Oct. 22, 2021

PHOENIX, October 15, 2021 – The Tonto National Forest Payson Ranger District will resume prescribed fire treatments in targeted areas around the town of Payson due to predicted favorable weather conditions starting Monday, Oct. 18, through Friday, Oct. 22, 2021.

Firefighters will burn approximately 316 acres of vegetative debris piles in the Colcord Estates area. During the day, smoke will impact the communities of Colcord Estates, Gordon Canyon, 13 Ranch and Ponderosa Estates. Residual smoke in the evening hours will impact these communities as well as Haigler Creek. Smoke may linger in these areas through Monday, Oct. 25.

During the 5-day operation, residents and visitors to these areas can expect to see and smell moderate-to-heavy amounts of smoke at times during these operations. Fire crews will terminate ignitions by 3 p.m. each day to minimize the impact of smoke. Signs will be posted on roads likely to be affected by smoke. Motorists are urged to use caution and slow down while driving through these areas for the safety of the public and firefighters.

Prescribed fire treatments are always dependent on conditions such as wind speed and direction, temperature, relative humidity, fuel moisture content and other variables. Broadcast and pile burn treatments typically continue for several days and are conducted when fuel moisture content of the vegetation and weather conditions are favorable. Low-to-moderate winds are needed to carry flames and to dissipate smoke during and after ignition operations and to achieve beneficial effects on the landscape.

In 2001, the Payson Ranger District began implementation of a far-reaching, long-range, landscape-scale, three-pronged fuels reduction strategy. The achievable goal is to reduce catastrophic wildfire danger in Rim Country, to initiate the restoration of natural ecological systems and to develop and foster sustainable forest conditions, wildlife habitat and watersheds.

10/10/2021

Thanks to all who participated in yesterday's Goldfield Ranch Community Burn Day - making our homes safer against wildland fire.

10/05/2021

Community Burn Day scheduled for Saturday, October 9th.

What a great monsoon! Recent rains have the desert wet and safe for another Community Burn Day. Get your piles ready!

Slash piles:
- Must be no larger than 6 feet high and 10 feet in diameter - the more vertical, the better.
- Must be at least 100 feet from any structure.
- Must be clear of overhead powerlines.
- Must not contain any household waste or petroleum-based combustibles (scrap lumber and cardboard are acceptable).
- Must have vehicular access to the slash pile.

When you have your slash piles ready, send an email to [email protected]. We'll inspect your piles and schedule your burn. Those of you who have contacted me previously are already on our schedule. When the burn schedule is finalized, we'll let you know when we plan to burn yours.

If you choose to burn your own, that's completely up to you. We will clear things with our cooperators (Fort McDowell Fire, USFS, Highway Patrol, etc.) beforehand, so they won't visit you. Just let us know when you plan to start, and we'll watch out for you.

Please remember - if you see fire under normal conditions, ALWAYS call 911 first - then contact us on 833-GFR-FIRE. Your call will sequentially ring the phones of our certified incident commanders, who will pick up if available. If we don't answer, it probably means that we're already working the incident. Leave a message, and wait for status from One Call Now.

Thank you,
Your Pal Chief Al (Retired)

07/14/2021

Community Burn Day scheduled for Thursday, July 15th.

Monsoon is here, the desert is wet, let's get this done!

Slash piles:
- Must be no larger than 6 feet high and 10 feet in diameter - the more vertical, the better.
- Must be at least 100 feet from any structure.
- Must be clear of overhead powerlines.
- Must not contain any household waste or petroleum-based combustibles (scrap lumber and cardboard are acceptable).
- Must have vehicular access to the slash pile.

When you have your slash piles ready, send an email to [email protected]. We'll inspect your piles and schedule your burn. Those of you who have contacted me previously are already on our schedule. When the burn schedule is finalized, we'll let you know when we plan to burn yours.

If you choose to burn your own, that's completely up to you. We will clear things with our cooperators (Fort McDowell Fire, USFS, Highway Patrol, etc.) beforehand, so they won't visit you. Just let us know when you plan to start, and we'll watch out for you.

Please remember - if you see fire under normal conditions, ALWAYS call 911 first - then contact us on 833-GFR-FIRE. Your call will sequentially ring the phones of our certified incident commanders, who will pick up if available. If we don't answer, it probably means that we're already working the incident. Leave a message, and wait for status from One Call Now.

Thank you,
Your Pal Chief Al (Retired)

06/28/2021

Questions about fires in our area? Download the "AZ DFFM" app to your phone. Select "AZ Fires Near Me, and then the bulls-eye icon to see what is burning (or has burned recently).

Remember - if you see fire, call 911 first, then call the Goldfield Ranch VFD on 833-GFR-FIRE to report.