Grand Canyon North Rim Fire Hits 123,000 Acres; Forest Service Scrambling To Fill Firefighting Positions

A wildfire that has closed the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park raged out of control over the weekend and is now the largest currently burning in the country. The Dragon Bravo fire has burned more than 123,000 acres and was only 13 percent contained as of Monday afternoon, according to a federal interagency website that tracks wildfires. The blaze, which was sparked by a lightning strike on July 4, has destroyed about 70 structures, according to the National Park Service, including the historic Grand Canyon Lodge and North Rim Visitor Center. The damage was bad enough to prompt the service to close the North Rim of the park for the rest of the 2025 season.

Thirty-nine large wildfires are burning across the country, covering about 523,000 acres in total, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Dry and windy conditions pushed the Grand Canyon fire out of control last month, and it is now one of seven large fires burning across Arizona, more than in any other state.

The fires come as the National Park Service and other federal agencies face large cuts to their workforces, including among personnel who help fight wildfires. Multiple reports have suggested that cuts made by the Trump administration to U.S. Forest Service staffing have hampered the agency’s ability to fight fires.

The National Park Service has lost 24 percent of its permanent workforce under the Trump administration, according to an analysis last month by the National Parks Conservation Association. The group said the cuts have reduced visitor services and weakened wildfire response. A Park Service spokesperson said in an email that the agency’s priority has been the safety of firefighters, staff and the public, and that it had successfully evacuated about 900 people from the North Rim area. The spokesperson added that “extreme weather conditions and a shift in wind overwhelmed” the service’s efforts to contain the Dragon Bravo fire and that “these rapidly evolving conditions were the primary cause of the fire’s expansion.”

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https://insideclimatenews.org/news/04082025/grand-canyon-fire-largest-in-nation/