'Extreme' Arizona wildfire burns 5,000 acres in just 7 hours

Hundreds of people have been evacuated after the wind-whipped wildfire spread across 5,000 acres in just hours.

By Henry Austin, NBC News contributor

Hundreds of people were evacuated in Arizona on Tuesday after a wind-whipped wildfire spread across 5,000 acres in just seven hours.

More than 300 firefighters, along with multiple helicopters and aircraft, moved in to tackle the ?extreme? blaze which started in ?remote, rugged terrain? on the east side of Granite Mountain near Prescott, Arizona, officials said.

Authorities told The Associated Press that the fire was man-made and under investigation.

Jeff Andrews, deputy fire staff officer for Prescott National Forest, said that short- and long-terms models were being used in a bid to predict how the fire might spread.

However, he warned that hot and windy conditions could make containing it more difficult.

In the space of just an hour yesterday, gusts of up to 22 mph pushed the pushed the fire from 20 acres to almost 200 acres.

Felicia Fonseca / AP

Dry conditions fuel blazes in the U.S.

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This story was originally published on Wed Jun 19, 2013 5:41 AM EDT

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