A warning to campers as they head over to the Coconino National Forest for the Memorial Day weekend where fires are causing some problems.
Fire officials say they're seeing a rash of abandoned or unattended camp fires. There have been 44 in just the past two weeks.
"That's a real problem for us and so for folks coming up this weekend I would really encourage them to put their fire completely out," Matt Engbring with the Coconino National Forest Fire Prevention team said. "Do not leave a fire unattended, we will have patrols and law enforcement in the area to help with that."
Last year, Coconino National Forest officials saw over 600 abandoned fires. They're currently investigating three that seem suspicious.
If you're planning to camp out, they're asking you to take action and make sure your camp fire is fully extinguished. That can be done by using a shovel to throw dirt on top of it and then topping it with water to make sure it's out. Also, don't leave the area until the fire is cool to the touch. Cool to the touch means you can actually put your hand in and sift around, if you can do that then it's safe for you, and for the forest and other campers, to leave your campsite.
