Black Fire growth slows as containment reaches 25%

Leah Romero, Silver City Sun-News
·3 min read
A view from Round Mountain of the smoke from the Black Fire burning in the Gila National Forest May 26, 2022.
A view from Round Mountain of the smoke from the Black Fire burning in the Gila National Forest May 26, 2022.

GILA NATIONAL FOREST – A quarter of the perimeter of the Black Fire is now contained though the fire itself continues to grow.

The human-caused wildfire has been burning in the Gila National Forest since May 13 and has now charred 254,840 acres. Growth appears to have slowed some since last week when the fire was gaining about 15,000 acres daily. The U.S. Forest Service announced in its daily update Wednesday that 25% of the perimeter is contained.

The exact cause of the blaze is still under investigation.

Only 12.6 miles separate the blaze from the town of Mimbres — south of the fire — and about 26 miles from both Silver City to the west and Truth or Consequences to the east.

The fire remains the third largest wildfire in New Mexico's history. It is about 43,000 acres away from matching the acreage of the Whitewater-Baldy Fire of 2012, which had been the state's largest for the past decade.

More: Two of the largest wildfires in New Mexico history are burning right now. Here's a look at the 10 largest.

A U.S. Forest Service map shows the distance the Black Fire is from nearby towns and recreational sites June 1, 2022.
A U.S. Forest Service map shows the distance the Black Fire is from nearby towns and recreational sites June 1, 2022.

Wednesday's daily report states that fire activity has increased along the eastern and southern edges, largely in part due to the warm, dry weather and fuels available in the terrain. Fire crews are reportedly positioned south of Hermosa and north of McKnight Cabin where they are working to suppress and tie in uncontained lines. They are also scouting for opportunities to use roads and trails to naturally tie control lines together.

Control lines established on the northern edge of the fire are holding, according to the forest service. However, smoke will be visible in the area as the fire finds interior pockets of unburned fuels to burn.

Dry weather conditions will continue Wednesday coupled with relative humidity in the single digits. Light winds in the morning are expected to turn into more intense southwest winds by the afternoon with gusts around 20 miles per hour. Aerial crews continue to drop water on the fire, cooling hotspots as winds allow.

There is a slight chance of afternoon showers or thunderstorms Thursday and Friday. Precipitation will be beneficial for containment, but thunderstorms also mean the possibility of new fire starts caused by lightning.

A community meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Sapillo Volunteer Fire Station, located at 860 Highway 35 North, Mimbres. Real-time evacuation status can be found online using the interactive map found at https://nifc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=d375d3d880a649aa914f693db309b892.

A smoke outlook for New Mexico June 1, 2022 shows air quality in the moderate range for much of the state.
A smoke outlook for New Mexico June 1, 2022 shows air quality in the moderate range for much of the state.

Highway 59 remains closed from Mud Hole to the 5.150 intersection. Forest Road 150 is closed at the North Star Helispot. Portions of the Gila National Forest are closed to the public due to the fire and restrictions remain in place to protect from further human-cause fires. Civilian drones and other non-fire aircraft remain restricted from flying over the Black Fire. Violating the flight restriction may result in criminal charges.

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Leah Romero is the trending reporter at the Las Cruces Sun-News and can be reached at 575-418-3442, LRomero@lcsun-news.com or @rromero_leah on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Silver City Sun-News: Black Fire growth slows as containment reaches 25%