MESA, Ariz. (AP) -- A stubborn wildfire in the Salt River bottom has burned 200 acres of dead trees and brush.

The Southern Fire, named for the nearest cross-street, was expected to be fully contained late Sunday evening, said Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman Pamela Mathis.

The brush fire started about midday Saturday southwest of Phoenix, Mathis said.

The cause was not immediately known, BLM officials said, but with no recent lightning strikes it most likely was human-caused.

BLM was using three single-engine air tankers, a helicopter under the Arizona State Land Department, two crews from the Arizona Department of Corrections and numerous engines from BLM, the Arizona State Land Department and Rural/Metro to battle the brush fire that could be seen across metro Phoenix.

One of the DOC crews from nearby Arizona State Prison Complex- Perryville, was comprised totally of women, Mathis said.

Among the plants burning in the river bottom is salt cedar, also known as tamarisk, which burns with a dark smoke.

BLM officials reported no injuries related to the brush fire as of late Sunday.

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Information from: East Valley Tribune/Scottsdale Tribune, http://www.eastvalleytribune.com

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