TUCSON, Ariz. - Firefighters are working to contain two of the largest wildfires in Arizona's history that together have burned through more than 300 square miles (780 square kilometres) of timber and brush, prompted evacuations and sent smoke into skies 200 miles (320 kilometres) away.
Both blazes expanded Friday while dozens of other fires burned in several Western states.
Residents in the scenic White Mountain community of Alpine in eastern Arizona near the New Mexico border were ordered earlier to evacuate as the Wallow fire neared. A shelter was set up at Blue Ridge High School in Pinetop-Lakeside. There was no exact figure on the number of evacuees.
The U.S. Forest Service said that four summer rental cabins burned earlier in the day.
As the blaze gobbled up another 15,000 acres (6,000 hectares), authorities warned residents of the town of Greer Friday night to be ready to leave.
The Apache County Sheriff's Department issued the notice to Greer, but there was no word on when or if the residents would have to evacuate. Greer has less than 200 permanent residents but the town and area attract many vacationers.
Fire incident commander John Philbin told The Associated Press Friday night that the fire pushed northward and expanded to 120,600 acres (48,800 hectares), or 187 square miles (484 square kilometres).
That made the blaze the state's third largest ever. The biggest, the Rodeo-Chediski, burned 469,000 acres (189,800 hectares) in 2002 and the Cave Creek complex fire burned 248,000 acres (100,365 hectares) in 2005.
Philbin said conditions should improve in the fire fight Saturday.
"For the first time in days there is no red flag warning," he said, referring an expected reduction in winds that have been fueling the flames.
Smoke from the Alpine fire was carrying all the way to Albuquerque, New Mexico, more than 200 miles (320 miles) to the northeast.
Meanwhile, the Horseshoe Two fire burning in far southern Arizona also expanded Friday and has become the fifth-largest wildfire in state history at 90,200 acres (36,500 hectares), or 140 square miles (360 square kilometres).
The evacuation order for Paradise and East Whitetail Canyon was issued Thursday night as strong winds pushed the Horseshoe Two fire toward the towns, the Cochise County sheriff's office said.
The nearby Chiricahua National Monument was closed as a precaution.
Beaver Creek and the other two evacuated communities are small. Paradise has about a dozen occupied homes and many other vacation residences, Carol Capas, a spokeswoman for the Cochise County sheriff's office, told the AP. East Whitetail Canyon has about a dozen homes.
The Horseshoe Two fire has been burning for days and about 800 firefighters were battling it.
Smaller fires were burning in New Mexico, Colorado, California and Alaska.
