by During the peak summer travel season, the National Park Service had to close an entrance to Grand Canyon National Park due to a wildfire that was consuming over 19,000 acres on Saturday, according to officials.
According to the Bureau of Land Management, a lightning strike in Fredonia, Arizona, on Wednesday night ignited the White Sage fire. The fire was not 100% contained as of Saturday, having scorched 19,153 acres.
According to the park, the fire was not burning inside Grand Canyon National Park.
According to a National Park Service news release, all park visitors were required to leave when the North Rim, the park’s entrance, was closed beginning Thursday.
The park posted on Facebook on Saturday that the access site will remain restricted to visitors until further notice. North of the Manzanita Rest Area, the North Kaibab Trail was temporarily closed.
About 84 miles from the Utah border, the North Rim is open seasonally and accounts for 10% of all Grand Canyon tourists. The park saw close to five million visitors in 2024.
Within the Grand Canyon National Park, another fire that was ignited by lightning was consuming 5,000 acres.
A website that tracks wildfires claims that the Dragon Bravo fire began on July 4.
On Saturday, there was 0 percent containment of the Dragon Bravo fire. To aid in putting out the fire, two helicopters were being brought in on Saturday.
The park’s most well-known entrance, the South Rim, which was still open, showed smoke from the fire.
