Ignited in the early afternoon at about 2:15 PM on July 5, 2023, the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

As of July 10, 2023[update], the fire had burned 831 acres (336 ha) and was 52% contained.

[3] On July 8, the efforts to mitigate the fire by building containment lines achieved considerable success.

[4] On July 10, 5% of the fire has been contained, and a plan to conditionally reopen U.S. Route 60 had been drawn up.

[2] The fire caused U.S. Route 60 to be closed in both directions from mileposts 256 to 311, north of Globe, Arizona.