PRESCOTT, Ariz. — The U.S. Forest Service is trying to protect one of Arizona's oldest known structures from falling victim to the Crooks Fire that's been burning around Yavapai County.
The federal agency recently shared photos of fire crews wrapping protective foil around the Palace Station, a stagecoach cabin that dates back to the 1870s, in an attempt to shield the historic structure from the Crooks Fire.
The foil sheets are supposed to reflect the fire's heat away from the wooden structure. Crews have additionally cleared away brush and low-hanging tree branches from around the old building.
Angela Goldman, a spokesperson for the Crooks Fire response team, said crews have been attaching sheets of foil to the Palace Station similar to how one wraps a Christmas present.
"It is flexible enough, it's almost like a fabric," Goldman said. "They're just going to staple that right to those wooden structures."
The foil has a fiber component that makes the material more durable and capable of protecting structures from flying fire embers, Goldman added.
As of Monday, the Crooks Fire had burned through more than 3,900 acres since it started on April 18. Fire crews have managed to contain about 22% of the wildfire.
"Fire managers are planning contingency lines to the south and west of the fire in the event that weather conditions may push the fire in those directions," the Forest Service wrote in a statement.
As the Crooks Fire continues moving south, fire crews have already taken precautions to protect the historic Palace Station, one of the state's last known stagecoach stops.
According to the Forest Service, the structure was built in 1874 by the Spence family and served as a resting stop for stagecoaches on the Senator Trail from Prescott to Phoenix until 1910.
Old newspaper clippings advertised the Palace Station as one of the "best stations" in Arizona that offered "food for the hungry and beds for the weary."
The Palace Station was later acquired by the Prescott National Forest and has been routinely maintained by local Boy Scouts troops.
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