FLAGSTAFF, Arizona (AP) – Raymond Otero lost his job and apartment in Tucson during the pandemic and recently headed north to escape the heat.
Forest fires around Strawberry forced him to leave, so he settled in a campsite further north in the National Forest around Flagstaff. Then the Coconino National Forest was closed due to the risk of forest fire.
The forest will be closed until at least July 4th, so bad luck for those who normally camp among the trees to save money or be in nature.
Many have neither the means nor the inclination to spend the night in RV sites. Some drove to a Walmart parking lot, an unofficial weighing station for travelers and self-proclaimed “nomads,” but were also told they had to leave because it was private property.
But where to go
“I have to park,” said Otero. “And every time I move, it costs gas.”
Green tow stickers were posted on some of the windows of vans and RVs in the Walmart parking lot. Signs said “no camping”.
“We’re not kicking them out,” said Nick Cersosimo, a Walmart manager. “It’s just that they’re not allowed here.”
Flagstaff Shelter Services offered people a spot in the parking lot with showers inside until the forest reopens, Executive Director Ross Altenbaugh said. Sedona and Cottonwood worked with local groups to determine what resources were available for the people displaced by the forest closure.
The effects are widespread across Arizona, with four of the five National Forests largely closed to visitors and locals.
Otero said he was careful about staying in a homeless shelter or forest fire evacuation center as he was concerned for his safety.
Allisha Little had hoped to crash for a while in Flagstaff to save some money on the way from Mesa. Recently she was sitting on the porch of her RV with her pets in their pet carriers, worried about moving away from the Walmart parking lot.
“For most of the people here, including me, it’s a real struggle to find a place to sleep and try to be comfortable and not have to worry about where else we’re going to stay,” she said.
Michel Harris, 77, has options. He’s retired so he enjoys driving the southwest. He spends the winters in Laughlin, Nevada, and the warmer months in Sedona, Flagstaff, and New Mexico aboard his 1978 Econoline RV.
He considered finding a place somewhere in the Coconino National Forest but said there was a risk of forest officials patrolling for violations of the closure order.
“They advertise a $ 5,000 fine and six months in prison, don’t they?” He said. “So it’s not worth it.”
Harris planned to wait a few days for the closure before moving on to Utah, where National Forests are open.
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