The Cave Creek Complex Wildfire was the third largest forest fire in the state of

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

to date, after the

Rodeo–Chediski Fire The Rodeo–Chediski Fire was a wildfire that burned in east-central Arizona beginning on June 18, 2002, and was not controlled until July 7.http://www.floa.org/rodeo_chediski/fire_photos12.htm Rodeo-Chediski fire, Forest lakes owners associatio ...

and

Wallow Fire The Wallow Fire, named for the Bear Wallow Wilderness area where the fire originated, was a massive wildfire that started in the White Mountains near Alpine, Arizona on May 29, 2011. The fire eventually spread across the stateline into wester ...

History

The fire started on June 21, 2005, by a lightning strike and scorched . Within an hour, the fire had already burned from . When news agencies were covering the story, a FOX news affiliate captured video of the historic Cave Creek Mistress mine destroyed by the fire as soon as the fire touched it. The mine was a total loss. The largest recorded

saguaro cactus The saguaro (, ) (''Carnegiea gigantea'') is a tree-like cactus species in the monotypic genus ''Carnegiea'' that can grow to be over tall. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, the Mexican state of Sonora, and the Whipple Mountains ...

— standing at 46 feet tall and having a base circumference of 7 feet, 10 inches — was also injured in this fire, and later collapsed.

Bibliography

* (2005).
FEMA Authorizes Funds To Help Arizona Fight Cave Creek Complex
" FEMA.gov. Retrieved September 8. * (2005). "Crews Work to Turn Arizona Wildfire Away From Homes." ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

''. June 24. * (2005).
Western Flames
" FOXNews. Retrieved September 8, 2007.

References

External links

Incident report, last update (July 14, 2005)
{{coord, 33.978, -111.785, type:event_region:US-AZ_dim:10km, display=title 2005 in Arizona 2005 wildfires in the United States Wildfires in Arizona