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Evacuations ordered after brush fire sparks near State Route 88 in Apache Junction

Posted at 3:56 PM, May 07, 2020
and last updated 2020-05-08 23:21:47-04

APACHE JUNCTION, AZ — A brush fire burning in Apache Junction is now 60 percent contained, fire officials say.

Evacuations were ordered Thursday afternoon while crews battled the fire near State Route 88 and Lost Dutchman Boulevard.

Officials say the Lost Dutchman Fire has burned an estimated 260 acres as of Friday night.

Bureau of Land Management spokesperson Dolores Garcia told ABC15 they "absolutely believe the fire was human-caused."

Apache Junction police say nearby homes on Hackamore Road were evacuated while fire crews worked to contain the blaze. Those evacuations were lifted late Thursday night.

About an hour after the Lost Dutchman Fire was reported, a second fire sparked less than two miles away. Officials battled both fires from the ground and air.

Watch video from the scene below.