‘Wall of fire’ sends residents of more than 700 homes fleeing in Arizona

Wildfire triples in size as wind gusts of up to 50mph kick up flames as high as 100ft outside a tourist town

An Arizona wildfire tripled in size on Wednesday to more than 19,000 acres, a day after heavy winds kicked up a towering wall of flames outside a northern Arizona tourist and college town.

Flames as high as 100ft raced through an area of scattered homes, dry grass and Ponderosa pine trees on the outskirts of Flagstaff as wind gusts of up to 50mph pushed the Tunnel fire over a major highway. The blaze has ripped through two dozen structures and sent residents of more than 700 homes scrambling to flee.