Arizona Gov.-elect Katie Hobbs has picked Dr. Theresa Cullen, Pima County health director, to lead the state Department of Health Services. Cullen has spent 35 years working in public health and took the helm in Pima County in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more»

A 38-year-old man who fired on Homeland Security agents during a traffic stop in 2019, setting off a firefight that killed a woman and wounded a federal officer, was sentenced to more than 36 years in prison Wednesday by a federal judge in Tucson. Read more»

The Contreras Fire has burned nearly 30,000 acres southwest of Tucson over the past week, with crews still working to protect Kitt Peak National Observatory and the blaze continuing in contained areas near the evacuated village of Pan Tak. Read more»

The Contreras Fire has burned thousands more acres in rough terrain the past several days, and officials at Kitt Peak National Observatory say assessing any damage to scientific instruments will be a priority. The village of Pan Tak near the base of the mountain also remains evacuated. Read more»

The Contreras Fire burned several structures atop Kitt Peak early Friday, and continued to advance through thousands of acres of rough terrain this weekend. Observatory officials have not yet been able to assess if any instruments were damaged, although scientific facilities appear intact. Read more»

The Contreras Fire topped the summit of Kitt Peak early Friday morning and breached the main road, however fire crews were able to defend the observatory's buildings through the night. Read more» 1

The Contreras Fire burning along remote ridges in the Baboquivari Mountain range doubled in size Thursday, consuming nearly 6,000 more acres of grass and brush in steep and rugged terrain in the desert southwest of Tucson. Read more»

Flags will be flown at half-staff on Thursday to honor Border Patrol Agent Daniel P. Cox, who died in a head-on collision with another vehicle on Saturday near Sells, Arizona. Read more»

Although the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona has been ravaged by COVID-19 — at one point serving as the world epicenter of infections — the Tohono O’odham Nation has not been hit as hard. Thanks to income from four casinos, including two near Tucson’s million residents and one in the Phoenix Valley surrounded by more than 4 million people, the tribe offers health care to all members. There are four clinics spread across the nation’s 11 districts. Read more»

Officer Bryan Brown of the Tohono O'odham Police Department died after he was shot during an altercation Thursday morning near a casino 100 miles west of Tucson, officials said. Read more»

A helicopter crew with the Arizona Department of Public Safety airlifted a 24-year-old woman from a remote section of the Tohono O'odham Nation Wednesday morning after she collapsed attempting to elude Border Patrol agents. Read more»

A Tohono O'odham Police officer arrested a man Wednesday afternoon near the village of Santa Rosa, about 63 miles northwest of Tucson, when he discovered him leading two horses carrying burlap sacks stuffed with narcotics worth more than $123,000. Read more»

Border Patrol agents rescued three hikers in the rugged Baboquivari Mountains on Wednesday after a 911 call for help on Tuesday, authorities said. Read more»

A helicopter crew from the Arizona Department of Public Safety airlifted an injured Guatemalan man after he was apprehended by Border Patrol agents on Tuesday. Read more»

A 911 call led to the rescue of a Mexican man and four teenagers on Monday afternoon by U.S. Border Patrol agents near Sells, about 56 miles southwest of Tucson. The group told the agents they had been walking in the desert for a week before they were rescued. Read more»