Brush fire closes Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park, 75% contained
MESILLA – Mesilla and Doña Ana County firefighters responded early Monday morning to a brush fire in Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park.
County spokesperson Anita Skipper said agencies received calls of a fire beginning at 4:30 a.m. and were still at work containing it.
She said the fire was active in multiple areas 200 to 300 yards apart and was about 75 percent contained before noon.
The park was closed to public access and a Mesilla Marshal was posted at the entrance on Calle del Norte Monday to turn visitors away. There was no smoke visible from the roadway or other indication of an active fire.
Mesilla fire chief Kevin Hoban said no structures were at risk, and that none of the 20 firefighters on scene were injured. Hoban did not predict how quickly the fire would be contained but said the park would likely remain closed Tuesday.
“We are planning on three days of operations,” he said. “It depends on how the weather treats us.”
Later in the afternoon, Wendy Mason of the state Forestry Division said the fire had burned about 50 acres and was believed to be human-caused.
Dry conditions and warm winds have fanned wildfires across New Mexico, prompting Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to declare states of emergency in several counties.
Leah Romero contributed to this report.
Algernon D'Ammassa can be reached at 575-541-5451, adammassa@lcsun-news.com or @AlgernonWrites on Twitter.
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This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Brush fire closes Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park
