Estimated $580M spent on largest wildfires in 2012

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Fire east of Nogales estimated at 3 square miles
Fire east of Nogales estimated at 3 square miles
A wildfire has burned about 3 square miles of grass and brush on ridges of the Coronado National Forest about a dozen miles from Nogales in rural Santa Cruz County in southern Arizona.
A wildfire has burned about 3 square miles of grass and brush on ridges of the Coronado National Forest about a dozen miles from Nogales in rural Santa Cruz County in southern Arizona.
1 of 2 fires north of LA contained
1 of 2 fires north of LA contained
A pair of tamed but persistent wildfires still burned in the hills and mountains around Interstate 5 after a wild week of burning brush in the area north of Los Angeles.
One of two wildfires burning in the hills and mountains around Interstate 5 north of Los Angeles was fully contained Saturday and authorities were getting an upper hand on the second one.
Udall tells USFS to override air tanker protest
Udall tells USFS to override air tanker protest
Sen. Mark Udall of Colorado is urging the U.S. Forest Service to make sure a contract dispute doesn't ground large air tankers used to fight wildfires.
Sen. Mark Udall of Colorado is urging the U.S. Forest Service to make sure a contract dispute doesn't ground large air tankers used to fight wildfires.
Calif. crews mop up wildfire as rain falls
Calif. crews mop up wildfire as rain falls
A flow of damp air from the Pacific Ocean helped firefighters in their battle against a huge wildfire burning through coastal mountains in Southern California.
Rains moved across Southern California on Monday, dousing remnants of a wildfire that blackened thousands of acres in coastal mountains and bringing much-needed moisture to a region left parched by a dry winter.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - Federal statistics show that efforts to douse the largest of the nation's wildfires last year cost more than $580 million, and some fires burned for more than three months.

A summary by the National Interagency Fire Center also shows that more than 80% of the 51 largest fires were sparked by lightning.

That includes the Long Draw and Holloway fires, which together burned more than 1 million acres and were among the largest in Oregon's history.

It was also a record year in New Mexico, where an estimated $42.4 million was spent fighting the state's largest and most destructive fires. Both were sparked by lightning.

The report shows hundreds of millions of dollars were also spent fighting the largest fires in California and Idaho.

Estimated $580M spent on largest wildfires in 2012 - Fox 2 News Headlines

Estimated $580M spent on largest wildfires in 2012

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