Sunset Point fire slows travelers
Staff Report ~ 6/2/2010

A fire along Interstate 17 near Sunset point, 20 miles north of New River, had traffic reduced to one lane at approximately noon on Monday.
In less than an hour the blaze grew to 80 acres, pushed by strong winds and fueled by dry conditions. Firefighters fought the flames with fire hoses and a helicopter that dropped large buckets of water from a nearby pond.
The Sunset Point rest area is located west of I-17, just south of exit 252.
A fire in virtually the same spot burned two weeks ago, and officials say that actually helped stop Monday’s fire. When the flames ran into the already burned up brush, it burned itself out in that direction.
By mid afternoon the fire was under control and traffic picked up again.