Rafael Fire Scar ash in Verde River 7/24/21.

Ash and charcoal from the Rafael Fire scar in Verde River 7/24/21. A 6500 CFS flash flood yesterday, 7/23/21, brought ash and charcoal from the Rafael fire, which burned from June 18, 2021 until July 15th in the Sycamore Canyon wilderness approximately 7 miles north of Clarkdale, AZ. The fire burned nearly 80,000 acres of scrub, Pinyon-Juniper and Ponderosa Pine forest. Nine days after it was contained, heavy rains and flash flooding brought the ash from the fire scar downstream to the Verde River @ Clarkdale stretch of the river.

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Monsoonal Flooding - Verde River -7/24/21

Monsoonal Flooding - Verde River -7/24/21, showing the Tuzigoot Bridge and Tuzigoot River Access Point (TuziRAP) on river left. Water peaked at about 7000 CFS late yesterday including water from drainages between the Clarkdale Gauge and TuziRAP. The dark color is from ash from the Rafael fire in Sycamore Creek Wilderness, about 12 miles upstream.

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