Gila River community wary of I-10 widening


ADOT will need the help of the Gila River Indian Community to widen the 26-mile Wild Horse Pass Corridor on I-10 between Chandler and Casa Grande./ADOT

Severio Kyyitan was awoken one recent morning by a thunderous thumping that reverberated through the walls of his home.

It might be an earthquake, he thought, until he looked outside and discovered a pack of wild horses running by his property on the Gila River Indian Community.

Animals have free reign on the reservation, he said, and that’s the way Kyyitan likes it.

He’s hopeful state officials will keep wildlife in mind as they plan a possible widening of Interstate 10 through the reservation.