Outdoor smoking banned at Guadalupe Mountains National Park as fire danger remains high
Guadalupe Mountains National Park banned outdoor smoking Tuesday as hot, dry and windy weather has increased fire danger at the national park southwest of Carlsbad.
In a press release, the U.S. Department of Interior’s National Park Service (NPS) said smoking was prohibited except inside personal vehicles until further notice.
The smoking bans are part of overall stage one fire restrictions enacted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Forest Service (NFS).
No campfires, charcoal, or propane fire rings are allowed in Guadalupe Mountains National Park at any time of year, said Theresa Moore, park spokesperson.
Closures were implemented June 28 due to increased fire risk, Moore said.
More: High heat and fire danger close portions of Guadalupe Mountains National Park Wednesday
Fire danger remained high Thursday in the Smokey Bear Ranger District, Sacramento Ranger District and Guadalupe Ranger District of the Lincoln National Forest too, according to the Forest Service website.
Fire danger along the Lincoln National Forest was listed as high as of June 15, said Lincoln National Forest Spokesperson Amanda Fry.
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Eddy County very dry in 2023
The New Mexico State University Agricultural Sciences Center south of Artesia received .79-hundredths of an inch of rain as of July 6.
Paul Pastelok, senior meteorologist with Pennsylvania based AccuWeather, said short- and long-term forecasts indicated a high-pressure ridge could break up as weak weather disturbances in the upper part of the atmosphere in northeast New Mexico could kick up winds in southeast New Mexico and west Texas.
More: Blistering summer heat threatens wildfires, strains power grids in southeast New Mexico
“We’re still looking at winds for the rest of the work week heading into the weekend,” he said.
“It’s just not very favorable right now as far to try and burn anything. That’s why we need the stop burning thing going because the wind and the dryness combined right now is going to kick up and flare up the next few days,” he added.
Pastelok said southwestern New Mexico could see beneficial summer or monsoon rains next week. He said those rains might increase wind activity over southeast New Mexico next week.
“Until we get to next Saturday or Sunday that we might have a slight chance of a shower or thunderstorm. That would be like the 15th of the month,” he said.
Mike Smith can be reached at 575-628-5546 or by email at MSmith@currentargus.com or @ArgusMichae on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Outdoor smoking banned at Guadalupe Mountains National Park
