VIDEO/PHOTOS: The Freeman Fire stayed active through the evening, hindering suppression efforts out of safety concerns, according to a social media post from the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management.
A sudden wind shift at around 10:30 p.m. "pushed the fire in all directions," the post said, increasing fire behavior and forcing the evacuation of Willow Springs Ranch. The blaze is about two miles from the ranch. The west flank of the fire is backing down off the Black Mountains. The east side of the fire is burning in rolling country filled with heavy vegetation, the post said.
Air attack was requested this morning.
The fire was the result of two lightning strikes. The first struck near the Oak Well Camp. A second struck about a mile away with the two fires subsequently merging.