Page 5 - Payson Fire News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Frank Aspeslagh can’t keep from smiling as he showed off the newly refurbished 2001 Chevy Silverado the Blattner Brush Pit received as a gift from the Payson Fire Department.

Three people were killed in a multi-vehicle accident north of Payson Friday night in one of the year’s first “mass casualty events.” It took some time for responders to unravel what had happened and how many vehicles it involved in an event that was originally reported as just a single vehicle rollover. In the end, the incident would require the use of every ambulance in the area, along with nearly every working fire and police personnel. Just after 8:30 p.m. on April 16, the Payson Fire Department was dispatched to milepost 258, just north of the East Verde Estates turnoff for...

In San Juan County Fire Department Chief Craig Daugherty’s opinion, Payson dodged at least seven wildfire bullets during the 2020 fire season. But the Polles Fire caused him the most alarm because of its location, start date, fuel condition and weather. Daugherty should know — he worked in operations on that fire. The Polles Fire started on July 3, a lightning strike 11 miles west of Payson and south of Pine in “highly abnormal” fuel conditions, which fanned by extreme winds, quickly escalated the situation. By the Fourth of July weekend the Polles Fire blew up. “The ...