DNR deals with budget cuts, reduced staff as wildfires rage in West

Wildfires burning the West have prompted the closure and evacuation of at least two national parks within a week of each other in Colorado and Arizona

The Dragon Bravo fire torching thousands of acres and destroying an historic lodge in Arizona

The dangerous situation forcing the north rim of Grand Canyon National Park to shut down for the season

The agency notes the lack of rain this winter combined with ongoing droughts could spark even more fires

Meanwhile, a pair of wildfires in Colorado forced the closure of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

The evacuations and closures come as wildfire season is yet to reach its typical peak in September

and the National Interagency Fire Center predicts it will be a particularly bad one

Adding to challenges, some Department of National Resources offices in western states lost around 30 percent of their staff due to voluntary severance earlier this year

Those offices also saw money cuts from fire mitigation and control budgets by the Trump administration

That's according to a DNR source who spoke anonymously with Straight Arrow News out of fear of a career retribution

The cuts come as a firefighting response against the Dragon Bravo fire is being openly questioned by Arizona governor asking why the federal government didn switch to a more aggressive attack sooner after the fire sparked on the 4th of July

Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs is now calling for an investigation into the matter

Meanwhile, nearly 200 firefighters are battling the South Rim fire in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

It's just one of dozens of fires burning in Colorado sparked when a lightning storm rolled through last week

The fires have resulted in disaster declarations for three western Colorado counties and torched thousands of acres of land

Arizona currently has two wildfires burning near Grand Canyon National Park, including the White Sage Fire, which has burned nearly 50,000 acres

Across the west, roughly three dozen fires are burning uncontained and another 80 are being managed to remove vegetation that has littered the landscape, according to officials

While the amount of land burned this year so far is below the 10-year average, officials warn hot temperatures, dry conditions and strong winds Tuesday threatened to further fuel fires in Arizona and Utah

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For Straight Arrow News, I'm Lauren Keenan