Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs is demanding answers after a massive wildfire at the Grand Canyon destroyed the famous Grand Canyon Lodge and dozens of other buildings, following a new report from the Arizona Republic that proved the mismanagement of the fire.
Previously reported, the Dragon Bravo Fire started from a lightning strike on July 4th and went on to burn between 50 and 80 buildings on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The most significant loss was the Grand Canyon Lodge, which was the only place visitors could stay inside the national park near the North Rim.
Governor Katie Hobbs wants federal investigators to look into what went wrong with the fire response.
"Arizonans deserve accountability. We need a thorough and independent investigation into the decisions that led to the Dragon Bravo Fire becoming one of the largest in Arizona history." Hobbs demanded.
Many wildfire experts and observers have criticized how park officials fought the fire. Instead of attacking it aggressively from the start, officials explained "there was no way to predict the Dragon Bravo Fire would turn into an inferno," AZCentral reported.
Critics, including Governor Hobbs, believe a more aggressive approach early on might have stopped the fire from becoming a disaster.
Evidence of Poor Management
The Arizona Republic's recent investigation highlighted an issue that park authorities were not following up on their own guidelines for battling wildfires. Additionally, they gave false updates on social media that minimized the severity of the incident.
Later, as the fire spread across large areas of the North Rim, Park Superintendent Edward Keable had to contradict the social media posts and admit the fire was much more serious.
The National Park Service had clear guidelines for dangerous fire conditions. Their 2025 Fire Management Plan warned that four weather conditions together create extreme fire danger: winds over 10 mph, wind gusts over 15 mph, humidity below 15%, and temperatures above 70 degrees.
The plan also noted that climate change is making these dangerous conditions happen more often, putting firefighters, visitors, and buildings at greater risk.
Governor Hobbs isn't satisfied with internal reviews from the agencies involved. She wants federal investigators to examine every decision made from when the lightning started the fire until it was finally controlled.
"We must understand what warnings were ignored and why the worst-case scenario became reality," Hobbs concluded.
