The Arizona Department of Transportation advises drivers to plan for delays on State Route 89A between Cottonwood and Sedona this fall while a pavement-repair project is underway.
Crews will have lane closures in place in both directions Mondays through Fridays from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. Work is scheduled to begin Tuesday, September 4 and continue through November.
Drivers should always proceed through the work zone with caution, slow down and watch for construction personnel and equipment.
PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation will hold an informational meeting on Thursday, July 12, in Sedona about plans for safety, roadway and bridge improvements along 12 miles of State Route 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff.
The meeting will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, July 12, at the Sedona Public Library, 3250 White Bear Road. A formal presentation is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
The four projects planned for this stretch of SR 89A beginning in 2019 will require traffic restrictions and are being coordinated to minimize impacts on those who live, work and recreate in the area. The work involves:
Rehabilitating the Pumphouse Wash bridge.
Rehabilitating pavement from the Sedona city limits north to Bear Howard Drive.
Reducing the potential for rock fall between mileposts 375 and 389.
Installing erosion control infrastructure.
More information on the projects is available at azdot.gov/SR89AImprovements.
Project team members will be at the meeting to explain the improvements and share information about proposed construction schedules and traffic plans. The public can ask questions, provide comments and speak directly with project team members.
Those unable to attend the meeting can ask questions and submit comments in these ways:
Toll-free ADOT bilingual project information line: 855.712.8530.
Email: SR89A@hdrinc.com.
Mail: SR 89A Projects c/o HDR, 101 N. First Ave., Ste. 1950, Phoenix, AZ 85003.
The deadline for comments is July 28.
SEDONA – Coconino National Forest firefighters are responding to a 40-acre wildfire approximately 9 miles northwest of Sedona growing in Sycamore Canyon Wilderness.
The human-caused Sycamore Fire was reported at about 10:20 a.m. today near Taylor Cabin Trail and is producing smoke that will be noticeable to those in the immediate area, burning primarily in pinyon juniper in the wilderness area.
Firefighting resources include four helicopters, five crews, and three engines—totaling approximately 100 personnel.
No structures are immediately threatened at this time and the wildfire is moving in the northeast direction. More information will be provided about this wildfire as it becomes available.
SEDONA — The Game and Fish Department reminds everyone to stop feeding wildlife following two javelina attacks near Sedona last month. Both attacks were the result of people feeding javelina at their homes.
On Feb. 5, Game and Fish received information that a 79-year-old woman was bitten by a javelina in a neighborhood southwest of Sedona. The attack occurred at around 4 p.m. at the woman’s residence, where she received severe bite wounds to her leg as she tried to stop the javelina from attacking her dogs.
A responding Game and Fish wildlife officer confirmed the woman was intentionally feeding a herd of javelina at her home. The victim was treated in Sedona and released.
The second incident occurred on Feb 25. The department received information that an elderly man was bitten by a javelina in Oak Creek Village as he was feeding a herd of javelina in his backyard. When food wasn’t provided quickly enough, one of the animals became aggressive and bit the man in the leg. He was treated at a local emergency room in Sedona and released. The victim has been going through the preventative rabies shot series.
These incidents placed the department in a very difficult position where it had to act immediately and consequently contracted with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services to conduct lethal removal of the javelina within a quarter-mile radius of the victims’ residences.
The decision to lethally remove the animals was based on the attacks, an imminent public safety threat created by intentional feeding, the habituation and loss of fear to humans by the javelina, and a concern for possible rabies. A javelina tested positive for rabies in Sedona approximately eight months ago.
“The Game and Fish department strongly discourages feeding wildlife other than birds and tree squirrels,” said Scott Poppenberger, Arizona Game and Fish Department Flagstaff regional supervisor. “Wildlife feeding frequently creates dangerous situations for both wildlife and people, often setting the stage for attacks.”
As wildlife are fed by people, they lose their natural fear of humans and become dependent on unnatural food sources. Feeding places the person feeding, their neighbors and the wildlife at risk.
The department is tasked with managing all wildlife in Arizona and working to ensure public safety. The department does not want to be in a position where it must decide to lethally remove wildlife due to irresponsible feeding so please help to keep wildlife wild.
Animals removed by USDA Wildlife Services have been sent to a laboratory for rabies testing. To date, test results received have been negative, some results are still pending.
To report unusual wildlife sightings or behavior call your local Arizona Game and Fish Department office or the appropriate county community health services department. For more information, visit www.azgfd.gov.
SEDONA – On September 2, 2017 at approximately 2:01 PM Coconino County Sheriff’s Deputies, Sedona Police Department, US Forest Service, and Sedona Fire District responded to Midgley Bridge for a report of a 2-1/2-year-old child that fell what was estimated 50-60 feet down a cliff along the Midgley Bridge Trail. Sedona Fire personnel rappelled down the cliff and found the child deceased. The family of the child is on vacation visiting the area from Omaha, Nebraska.
The case remains under investigation by the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office and Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office.
SEDONA – Motorists traveling on State Route 89A north of Sedona should allow extra time Monday, May 8, and Tuesday, May 9, while roadway striping is underway.
A rolling lane-striping operation is scheduled during daylight hours, weather permitting. Although no travel lanes on SR 89A will be closed, drivers should be patient and watch for slower-moving equipment between mileposts 375 and 386 in Oak Creek Canyon.
ADOT works to inform the public about planned highway restrictions and closures, but it’s possible that unscheduled impacts might occur because of weather or other factors. For the most current information about highway conditions statewide, visit ADOT’s Traveler Information site at www.az511.gov, follow ADOT on Twitter (@ArizonaDOT) or call 511, except while driving
Area where body was recovered.
February 28, 2017 a hiker in the area of Brins Mesa north of Sedona found some human bones and a weathered shoe in a steep drainage off the mesa. The hike reported the find to the Sheriff’s Office.
March 1, 2017 Sheriff’s deputies and detectives hiked into the drainage and located the human bones, the shoe and some tattered clothing.
Detectives contacted surrounding police agencies and learned that the Sedona Police Department had taken a report in October 2007. At that time 38 year old Sedona resident Paul Ashley was reported missing by his brother. Sedona Police learned that Ashley had sent personal property to his brother with a note stating he was leaving, but did not express any other intentions. Ashley left a similar note with his landlord. Ashley was last seen riding a bicycle away from his home.
During their investigation, Sedona Police received information about a bicycle locked to a tree and possibly abandoned off the Brins Mesa Trail. The bicycle was never located and presumed to have been taken, but Sedona Police and the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office believed the bike may have been Ahsley’s. Sedona Police later learned that Ashley had purchased a handgun from a gun dealer in Flagstaff just prior to his disappearance.
The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Unit conducted a search in the area on October 25, 2007 and again on November 4, 2007 but did not locate Ashley or the bicycle. Police were never able to authenticate if the bicycle was Ashley’s. No new information was found indicating where Ashely had gone.
The Coconino County Search and Rescue Unit conducted a search in the drainage on Saturday March 11, 2017 and located more bones, clothing and a Glock handgun a short distance down the drainage from where the first bones were found. Detectives were able to verify the serial number of the handgun matched that of the one Ashley purchased shortly before his disappearance.
The remains were taken to the Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office for examination. The cause and manner of death are pending and positive identification of the remains are still being investigated.
Stop the mud! Motorists using State Route 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff should allow extra travel time on Friday, March 3, while Arizona Department of Transportation crews make emergency repairs to guardrail damaged by last Monday’s storm. SR 89A will be reduced to one lane just north of Indian Gardens (milepost 379) from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Flaggers will provide alternating north- and southbound travel through the work zone. Motorists should allow extra travel time and plan for delays.
Drivers should proceed through the work zone with caution, slow down and watch for construction personnel and equipment.
ADOT works to inform the public about planned highway restrictions and closures, but it’s possible that unscheduled impacts might occur because of weather or other factors. For the most current information about highway conditions statewide, visit ADOT’s Traveler Information Site at www.az511.gov, follow ADOT on Twitter (@ArizonaDOT) or call 511, except while driving.
Motorists using State Route 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff should allow extra travel time next week when the roadway is reduced to one lane near Slide Rock while a new cell tower is installed.
SR 89A will be narrowed to one lane between mileposts 381 and 384 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, December 13, and Wednesday, December 14. Flaggers will be on site to provide alternating north- and southbound travel through the work zone and delays are possible.
Drivers should proceed through the work zone with caution, slow down and watch for construction personnel and equipment.
ADOT works to inform the public about planned highway restrictions and closures, but it’s possible that unscheduled impacts might occur because of weather or other factors. For the most current information about highway conditions statewide, visit ADOT’s Travel Information Site at www.az511.gov, follow ADOT on Twitter (@ArizonaDOT) or call 511, except while driving.
SEDONA — Motorists traveling on State Route 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff during evening hours should allow for extra travel time beginning Monday, December 5, as ADOT crews install fencing at Midgley Bridge located about two miles north of the city of Sedona.
Work to install fencing will involve overnight lane closures and alternating traffic over the bridge at milepost 376. The restriction will be in place from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Sundays through Fridays through Friday, December 23. If necessary, work will resume on Monday, December 26, and continue until complete.
The 10-foot-tall chain-link fencing attaches to the bridge’s railings. ADOT is installing the fencing in partnership with Sedona, the U.S. Forest Service and Coconino County to enhance public safety at the historic bridge over Oak Creek.
Drivers should proceed through the work zone with caution, slow down and watch for construction personnel and equipment.