The Puerco Valley Fire District in northeastern Arizona stopped responding to emergency calls on July 24 and filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy less than a week later, federal court records showed.
Navajo Nation Fire and Rescue and Navajo Nation Emergency Medical Service announced the activation of emergency response plans for Sanders and other affected communities within the Navajo Nation on July 27.
Officials warned that longer travel distances could increase response times.
The Puerco Valley Fire District covered about 2,500 square miles and had responded to 150 fire or emergency calls and 916 ambulance or medical calls during the previous fiscal year, according to its bankruptcy filing.
Navajo Nation officials directed residents to call 911 during
emergencies or request assistance at 928-871-6111 or 928-871-6112.
The district was based in Sanders, a community near the New Mexico border.
What led to the Puerco Valley Fire District shutdown?
Apache County stopped passing property tax money to the fire district and instead used it to reduce a deficit from earlier overpayments, according to the bankruptcy filing.
Those taxes supplied about 40% of its revenue during the previous fiscal year. The county calculated that the district’s account was about $3.09 million in the red as of May 31, the filing said.
Apache County said the district had spent more than $3 million beyond the amount its property tax levy created, according to a letter from the county shared in the filing.
State law required the county to use new tax collections to reduce the deficit, the letter said. The county could not lend the district money or provide funding beyond the amount authorized under state law.
The loss of tax revenue left the district without enough money to maintain fire and ambulance service. It filed its voluntary Chapter 9 bankruptcy petition July 30.
Rey Covarrubias Jr. is a reporter for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Email him at: rcovarrubias@azcentral.com, and connect with him on Instagram, Threads, Bluesky and X (formerly Twitter) at @ReyCJrAZ.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona fire district stops emergency response, files bankruptcy
