Wildfire burning in Santa Ritas south of Tucson

A new wildfire started in the Santa Ritas Monday afternoon, according to the Arizona Wildfire Dashboard.

The “Gardner 2” wildfire was discovered about 5:24 p.m. and quickly grew to about 22 acres, officials say. The wildfire is about 10 miles west of Sonoita, in Santa Cruz County.

No cause has been determined at this time.

Back to homepage

Subscriber Login

Keep reading with a digital access subscription.

Subscribe now

The Coronado National Forest Service has been releasing updates via Facebook since the wildfire was first reported. Tanker crews dropped retardant around the front two-thirds of the wildfire Monday night, and light winds in the area were able to help blow back the fire's progress, the agency said.

Crews were able to create a perimeter around the fire through the night and air crews on Tuesday were expected to drop buckets of water on the flames.