Firefighters at the Grand Canyon are racing to contain two raging wildfires that have devastated a historic lodge and forced the closure of a section of the park for the remainder of the season.

The fires, located approximately 35 miles apart, include the White Sage Fire, the larger of the two, which has scorched about 50,000 acres on the park's north side. To the south, the Dragon Bravo Fire has burned nearly 6,000 acres.

Officials suspect that a lightning strike may have ignited both blazes, fueled by extreme heat, dry conditions, low humidity, and strong winds affecting the Grand Canyon region in recent weeks.

Over the weekend, aerial bucket drops were used to slow the fires' progress, but aerial retardant drops — chemical agents used to control wildfires — could not be deployed due

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