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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 2002

A fire which started on the White Mountain Apache Reservation has grown to the size of Los Angeles.

The Rodeo-Chediski Fire, named for two separate blazes that merged this week has grown to 375,000 acres. It inched towards a town near the reservation.

President Bush declared the reservation and two counties a disaster area. He visited the area yesterday to encourage fire fighters and show support for 30,000 evacuees.

Bush also thanked Apache chairman Dallas Massey. The tribe has shut down its casino and timber business in response to the blaze.

Get the Story:
Apaches' economy burns with forest (The Denver Post 6/26)
Skittish, unpredictable fire inches closer to Show Low (The Arizona Republic 6/26)
'We are going to whip this thing (The Arizona Republic 6/26)
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Bush: 'Hang in there, you brave and great people' (The Arizona Daily Star 6/26)
Firefighters endure 'hurry up and wait' (The Arizona Daily Star 6/26)
Bush Consoles Arizona Evacuees, Declares Fire Site a Disaster Are (AP 6/26)
Where Curtain of Smoke Parts, a Vista of Ruin Emerges (The New York Times 6/26)
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Related Stories:
Apache community saved from flames (6/25)
Ariz. fire forces thousands to flee (6/24)
Ariz. wildfire rages on (6/21)