Fire sweeps of Arizona close to the worst State - CNN International

Winds of fuel Arizona wildfireArizona worst forest fires burned 468,638 acres in 2002 the current roll fire has scorched 430,171 acres in this ArizonaOfficials say Springerville and eager are not safe enough for evacuees to go homeFirefighters you feel optimistic as the fire is 6% figure

(CNN) - fire claimed progress in the fight against a fire 15 days of age in the eastern region of Arizona as the most available on Sunday to become the worst fire in the history of the State.

The second fire had burned 430,171 acres, firefighters said Saturday late, an area larger than the majority of the largest in the United States cities.

The so-called fire wallowing timid is that coincide with the 2002 Rodeo/Chediski fire, the largest 38,467 Arizona hectares.

Firefighters said that they are making progress digging trenches, establish their own fires to take natural fuels from fire retardant advances and dump from the air in the flames of 100 and foot.

It "has been chasing us around, but after today we are feeling very optimistic," Jerome MacDonald told reporters late Saturday.

The fire, which broke out on May 29 in the Apache national forest, is 6% content, said MacDonald, Chief of operations for the Southwest interagency incident management team, that the fight against fire.

It was hoped that the quality of air in large part again Mexico and eastern Arizona get worse over the weekend due to forest fires, said that officials of health and the environment again Mexico.

Heavy smoke could affect the sensitive groups, including children, pregnant women, people with asthma and people with lung and heart disease, said the Department of environment of New Mexico.

The national weather service said stelae of smoke from forest fires in Arizona will continue to move to Santa Fe and Albuquerque.

Heavy smoke has permeated all the fire of Arizona communities.

"I have seen the Sun clearly for several days," said Rita Baysinger, a spokeswoman for the Southwest interagency incident management team.

MacDonald said shifting winds to start the compensation by the smoke.

"All the smoke from the fire has basically been channelled through Eagar in the Valley and he settled there in the morning", said MacDonald. "Do not expect the same sort of conditions of smoke in the coming days".

MacDonald also said that the fire threatens communities north of the fire, as Eagar and Springerville, has declined.

"I feel much better on the Northwest and the Northeast and North where these communities were threatened," MacDonald said. "There is still much work to do in terms of cleaning and security, but today was a very good day".

But fire officials said that they are not prepared to allow that evacuated residents of Springerville and Eagar to go home.

At least 9,114 people have been evacuated of Springerville, Eagar, Nutrioso, Alpine, Greer and its surroundings.

The fire has consumed 29 houses, 22 of them in the evacuated town of Greer. CNN Phil Gast and writer Craig Johnson contributed to this report.

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