Westbound Interstate 40 will be narrowed to one lane at Exit 149 (County Line) milepost 148 for bridge work.
The lane restriction will begin Monday (July 20) to Thurs (July 23) from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
Please allow for extra travel time while in construction area and exercise caution while driving in the work zone.
ASH FORK — Westbound travel on Interstate 40 (I-40) at the County Line traffic interchange (Exit 148) just east of Ash Fork is reduced to one-lane of travel and will be in place continuously including nights and weekends until late July while repairs are underway. Construction within the work-zone will be active during daylight hours; however the restrictions will be in place both day and nighttime hours.
The westbound on-ramp at the County Line (Exit 148) will also be closed while work is being performed at the interchange. The recommended detour is to exit at the Monte Carlo traffic interchange (Exit 149) then cross over for westbound travel.
ADOT advises the public to allow for extra travel time while work is being performed and to observe reduced speeds in the area.
ASH FORK — On June 27, 2015 at approximately 10:48 pm Coconino County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a single family residence located in Kaibab Estates West which is a rural unincorporated neighborhood located north of Ash Fork, Arizona on the report of an aggravated assault in progress possibly involving an axe and a firearm. Upon their arrival Deputies identified an adult female as the home owner and an 18 year old female who was identified as the home owner’s granddaughter who had her two six month old twin infants with her.
The Deputies approached the home and found the suspect identified as 29 year-old Stephen Lee Garcia of Ash Fork, AZ laying face-down on the ground. Deputies secured him and placed him in handcuffs. The Deputies were assisted with this response by Yavapai County Sheriff’s Deputies and Arizona Department of Public Safety Officers.
According to the homeowner, Garcia was a friend of hers who she had not been in contact with for a number of years. On June 27, the victim gave Garcia a ride and dropped him off at an undisclosed location. Later in the afternoon the suspect arrived at the victim’s residence and she allowed him to enter. According to the victims, Garcia who had been consuming alcohol was holding one of the infants and began to put pressure around the baby’s upper torso and squeezed the child tightly to his chest. They were concerned about the child because they believed he was turning purple. The child’s mother struggled with Garcia until she was able to take her baby at which point she took both infants to a bedroom locking the door behind them.
During the course of this assault Garcia allegedly assaulted both of the adult females to include squeezing their upper torsos making it difficult for them to breath. According to one of the victims, Garcia also struck one of the family dogs three or four times in the head with an axe causing serious injuries to the animal. Garcia began kicking the locked door of a bath room that the granddaughter was hiding in and was able to reach in and grab her by the leg attempting to pull her out. Garcia got to his hands and knees and was threatening the victim with an axe. The homeowner took the axe away from Garcia and struck him in the back of the head with it multiple times rendering him unconscious.
Garcia was flown to the Flagstaff Medical Level One Trauma Center by Native Air. The homeowner, her granddaughter, and the two infants were taken to the hospital by ground ambulance and by Sheriff’s Deputies. The dog that Garcia attacked sustained serious but non-life threatening injuries.
Upon Garcia’s release from the medical center, he was taken to the Coconino County Detention Facility where he was incarcerated for multiple counts of Aggravated Assault, Animal Cruelty, Criminal Damage and Disorderly Conduct. He is currently being held on a $100,000 cash or secured bond.
WILLIAMS — We can see by the ol’ Williams clock that Williams has moved into the 40% chance of rain forecast for this afternoon. The forecast for Flagstaff is about the same.
As of this writing, there is a 40% chance of rain this afternoon rising to 60% tonight. Flagstaff has a 50% chance this afternoon and 60% overnight. The chance of showers and thunderstorms hovers around 30% through Friday afternoon.
Ash Fork can also expect showers and thunderstorms throughout week with a 10% less chance as Williams.
WILLIAMS — If you are coming to Williams for this long weekend (or pretty much any time), you probably wonder what pet services are available in town. Apart from the Chinese made toys and treats stocked in the general stores.
Veterinary services are available at the Williams Veterinary Clinic open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Friday. The clinic is located at 122 3rd Street. They provide a full range of pet health care services. They also sell Science Diet dog food products at their store. On certain weekends, they hold a vaccine clinic at the Spoiled Rotten Pet Boutique. Their phone number is 928-635-5392.
They do not, however, have emergency care. There are two locations in Flagstaff that provide emergency pet care. You might want to call ahead to make sure they know that you are coming.
Another emergency veterinary clinic is trying to get started in Flagstaff. According to the latest on their web site, the Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Center of Northern Arizona plans to open on May 29. They plan to be open all weekend long from Friday at 5 p.m. to Monday at 8:30 a.m. to provide emergency medical services for pets. The pet hospital will be open 24 hours on holidays when other veterinary clinics are closed.
As an aside to the Williams clinic, Traci started Spoiled Rotten Pet Boutique & Supplies (Facebook) located at 517 E. Historic Route 66 on the east end of town. They sell cat and dog toys and clothing, bedding and the like. They stock Science Diet foods and treats. They include a selection of treats from the Bubba Rose Biscuit Company that are baked treats iced with yogurt.
On the grooming front, just down the street from Spoiled Rotten at 402 E. Route 66 is Manytails Pet Grooming. They have pet sitting and daycare services. They open Tuesday through Saturday at 9 a.m. You can call 928-635-8897 for appointments.
If you are traveling from Kingman, Seligman—and all points west—to Williams, you might have a pet that just needs to be groomed. Or, perhaps, Manytails is too busy to get your pet groomed on time for that formal activity. You can call Aunty Abby’s Pet Services and Doggie Day Spa at 928-380-5123. Aunty Abby’s is located at 47125 N. 5th Street in Ash Fork. She provides bathing, grooming, nail clipping and pet sitting.
ASH FORK — Motorists traveling along Interstate 40 between Kingman and Flagstaff should allow for extra travel time on Monday, May 11 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. as the Arizona Department of Transportation works to cleanup diesel fuel spilled from an earlier crash at the east Ash Fork Bridge (Exit 146), approximately 50 miles west of Flagstaff.
Westbound I-40 will be closed between 9 a.m. to noon, May 11 and traffic will be detoured through the town of Ash Fork.
Eastbound I-40 will be closed between 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Traffic will be detoured onto the Exit 146 off ramp and then back on the Exit 146 on ramp.
Law enforcement will be assisting with traffic control during the detour. The speed limit will be reduced and drivers are urged to be alert for construction vehicles and flaggers.
WILLIAMS — Williams and Flagstaff share identical weather patterns through the week with Ash Fork receiving a slightly less chance of rain.
Williams and Flagstaff share an 80% chance of rain today lowering to 60% through Tuesday. Tuesday night there is a 40% chance of rain. Wednesday is expected to be sunny with Thursday being breezy. Thurday night the chance of thunderstorms picks up again and lasts through Saturday during the day.
Ash Fork has a similar pattern except that the town has a 10% less chance of rain through Tuesday night. The chance of rain picks up on Thursday through Friday during the day becoming sunny Saturday during the day and partly cloudy at night.
WILLIAMS — The weekend weather for Williams and Flagstaff include a chance of snow Sturday and Sunday. Ash Fork can expect rain showers and cooler temperatures.
In Williams and Flagstaff there is a chance of thunderstorms after 11 a.m. with wind gusts up to 30 mph. Tomorrow there is a chance of thunderstorms after 11 a.m. Rain showers are predicted before 11 p.m. Rain and snow is expected after 11 p.m. with an accumulation of 1 inch possible. Snow and rain may continue Sunday morning with about a half-inch of new snow accumulation possible. High winds are expected throughout the weekend.
Ash Fork can expect rain tonight through Sunday with high winds.
The National Weather Service is predicting a chance of showers starting tomorrow for Williams and Flagstaff.
The two cities share approximately the same weather pattern with a 10 percent chance of showers Wednesday after 11am. Mostly sunny, with a high near 58. South wind 6 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph. There is a 10 percent chance of showers before 11pm. Partly cloudy, with a low around 32. South southwest wind 5 to 15 mph becoming east southeast in the evening. Winds could gust as high as 24 mph.
The chance of showers continues with a chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after Thursday 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 54. Chance of precipitation is 30%. At night a 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 29.
Friday, a chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 52 and a low around 30 at night. Saturday is about the same with a high near 58 and a low around 31.
Sunday will be Sunny, with a high near 61 and a low around 34.
Ash Fork should be partly cloudy, with a low around 35. Southeast wind 12 to 17 mph decreasing to 5 to 10 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 28 mphWednesday Night. There is a 30% chance of thunderstorms after 11 a.m. through Thursday night. The expected high near 61.
There is a chance of showers Friday through the night with a high near 60 and a low around 34. There is a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms Saturday. Mostly sunny, with a high near 66 and a low around 36. Sunday is expected to be Sunny, with a high near 69 and a low of 36 at night.
American Legion Cordova Post #13 posts the colors in Williams on President’s Day.
FLAGSTAFF — While many were off for this weekend in honor of President’s day—perhaps taking selfies at the Grand Canyon—Search and Rescue (SAR) crews had a busy weekend responding to three missions. Rescue assistance from Coconino County Search and Rescue was required in Williams, Ash Fork and Flagstaff.
The first occurred on Saturday at approximately 3:15 pm when the Williams Fire Department requested assistance responding to an injured adult male hiker in the Bennett Spring area. The hiker had sustained a fall and was complaining of back pain. Search and Rescue personnel responded and assisted with interpreting some GPS location information and rescuing the hiker from the location where he was injured.
Williams Fire personnel hiked in and made initial patient contact and SAR personnel hiked in with additional equipment. It was determined that a helicopter short haul rescue was the most appropriate technique due to the patient’s condition. An Arizona Department of Public Safety Air Rescue helicopter from Kingman responded to the scene and picked up a Heli-Rescue Technician from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office. The Heli-Rescue Technician was inserted a short distance away from the patient and then hiked to the scene and placed the patient, who was on a backboard, into the Bauman Bag which is the device used during short haul rescue. The helicopter then conducted a short haul during which the rescuer and the patient were suspended 150 feet below the helicopter on a rope. The patient and rescuer were flown from the accident scene to Camp Clover landing zone where the patient was transferred to LifeLine Ambulance for transport to Flagstaff Medical Center. The rescue was complete by 6:30 pm.
While the rescue in Williams was occurring the Sheriff’s Office was responding to a report of a missing 9 year old male in the Westwood Ranch area north of Ashfork. The child had been last seen at 1:00 pm at a residence near Stone Lake and had run into the woods following an argument. When the child did not return in a short period of time the family contacted the Sheriff’s Office for assistance.
Helicopter rescue at Mt. Elden. Coconino County Sheriff photo.
Deputies and Search and Rescue responded to the scene. Both a tracking and trailing search dog and an area search dog were used during the initial response. Additional ground search and rescue and the DPS Air Rescue helicopter joined the search using night vision in forward looking infrared units to search for the child. Due to the large search area additional search and rescue resources were requested from Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office to respond in the morning. At approximately 7:24 AM on Sunday as the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office team were driving to the incident command post location they located the child walking down a road. The child identified himself and asked for help. The child was cold and tired but in otherwise good condition. He was transported to the incident command post and reunited with his family.
On Sunday night at approximately 9:30 PM the Sheriff’s Office and SAR personnel responded to a report of four lost hikers; three males and one female, on Mt. Elden in need of assistance. The hikers had become stranded due to darkness near the waterfall area on Mt. Elden. Rescuers made voice contact with them in that area and then DPS Air Rescue was able to locate them and guide them down the slope which they illuminated with the spotlight. Rescuers met them on their descent and then guided them to the trail head. The hikers were lightly dressed and not prepared for cold overnight temperatures. This was the second rescue in the waterfall area of Mt. Elden in a week.
Search and Rescue would like to remind outdoor recreationists to follow some simple advice to keep them safe and aid in a search and rescue effort if it is needed. Outdoor recreationists should always tell someone where they are going and when they will be back so that if a person does not arrive as expected Search and Rescue will have a place to start the search effort. Recreationists should also carry the 10 essentials on every hike since no one ever intends to get lost or hurt on their outing but it can happen. Those essentials include:
1. Water
2. Food
3. Extra warm clothing
4. Navigation equipment (map, compass, GPS)
5. Headlamp/Flashlight and extra batteries
6. First Aid Kit
7. Shelter Material such as a space blanket or large leaf bag
8. Fire starting kit or backpacking stove
9. Pocket knife or multi-tool
10. Whistle/Signal mirror
An eleventh essential is a cell phone. While a cell phone doesn’t always work in backcountry locations, sending and receiving texts sometimes works when calls don’t. Also, your cell phone can help provide rescuers with important information about the situation and the location.