image: The Slide Fire, reported just before 4 pm on May 20, is burning in Oak Creek Canyon just north of Slide Rock State Park. There have been several road closures implemented due to the fire. Over 300 structures are being threatened by this fire and a heavy smoke has descended on the Flagstaff area. A two to three mile stretch of area has been evacuated as well as a forest service lookout tower. Evacuees were sent to a middle school in Flagstaff. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time and it has currently burned 4,500 acres. Fire personnel are dealing with steep slopes, canyons, and dangerous terrain in fighting this fire. This natural-color satellite image was collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite on May 21, 2014. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS's thermal bands, are outlined in red. view more
Credit: NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team. Caption: NASA/Goddard, Lynn Jenner with information from inciweb.org