ALBUQUERQUE — A massive blaze that has burned more than 265 square miles in the Gila National Forest has become the largest fire in New Mexico history, fire officials confirmed Wednesday.
The erratic blaze grew overnight to more than 170,000 acres, surpassing a blaze last year that burned 156,593 acres in Los Conchas and threatened Los Alamos National Laboratory, the nation’s premier nuclear facility.
Experts says the mammoth fire may be just a preview of what’s to come in part of the western United States after months of drought and dry conditions.
The Gila forest fire also is the largest burning in the country. It formed last week when two lightning-sparked blazes merged in an isolated mountainous area in southwestern New Mexico, where it has destroyed about a dozen homes and prompted evacuations of nearby towns and health alerts for some of the state’s largest cities.
Fire information officer Jerry Perry said about 1,200 firefighters from across the state were battling the growing blaze, but they continue to face low humidity and shifting winds in their efforts.
“We’re still facing adverse weather conditions that are posing a challenge,” Perry said. “We’re doing a lot of burnout operations, and yesterday, we had to deal with a lot of spot fires.”
The fire has not been contained, and officials worry that shifting winds and dryness related to the state’s record drought may cause the blaze to further expand.
The fire, so far, has threatened few communities and was burning away from many of New Mexico’s largest towns and cities. But state officials issued air-quality alerts for areas as far off as Albuquerque and Santa Fe last weekend, and Perry said parts of southern New Mexico could expect to see smoke from the fire.
Jeremy Sullens, a wildland fire analyst at the National Interagency Fire Center, said La Niña is the main reason the Southwest has experienced months of drought and saw a relatively mild winter. Grass that would have fallen under the weight of snow remains high, sparking dangerous fire conditions, he said.
Crews grapple with Colorado fires
Fire managers requested an additional helicopter to help fight a 9-square-mile wildfire in southwestern Colorado, near the Utah border. Rita Baysinger of the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center said the helicopter was flying Wednesday, battling flames in a steep and rugged area. An additional five helicopters are fighting the blaze, which is 50 percent contained despite increasing more than 600 acres overnight. Officials said no structures are threatened.
A second fire near Pagosa Springs grew by 450 acres overnight. It scorched more than 4.6 square miles and is threatening 40 structures. The fire remains at zero containment.
The Associated Press
