Single Publication

Midnight Fire June 16, 2022, Daily Update, 08:00 AM

Acres: 4,919 
Containment: 16% 
Total personnel: 404 Start Date: June 9, 2022
Cause: Lightning 
Location:  4.5 miles NNE of El Rito in Rio Arriba County 
Fuels: Heavy mixed conifer, ponderosa pine, brush, and grass 

Highlights: There will be a virtual public meeting this evening. The meeting will be live streamed to the Carson  National Forest Facebook page at 6 p.m. With containment increasing to 16%, crews have begun mop up activities across the fire area.

Operations: Yesterday, firefighters made great progress across all containment lines, continuing to reinforce handlines, dozer lines, and road systems. Crews and equipment on the ground continued to patrol the fire perimeter looking for areas of heat or smoke to ensure line integrity as we move into another day of high winds. Aviation assets supported ground resources by identifying locations of smoke or heat near lines and assisting with water drops.

Today, firefighters will focus on holding containment lines during expected high wind conditions, while also beginning to mop up along the fire line. Mop up is a process where firefighters work to extinguish or remove burning material near control lines down to the mineral soil, felling fire damaged trees, and cooling ash pits to make a fire less likely to escape the line and to reduce residual smoke. Once this work is completed, this portion of the fireline will be contained. Engines and crews will continue patrol efforts along with aviation assets which will be supporting these operations while weather conditions permit. 

Evacuations: To view real-time evacuation information around the Midnight Fire, visit: www.tinyurl.com/midnightfiremap  . For emergency alerts in Rio Arriba County, sign up here: https://local.nixle.com/signup/widget/i/6807. The Ready, Set, Go evacuation guide is available in English and Spanish here: https://tinyurl.com/RSGNM. For disaster assistance resources, visit: https://www.nmdhsem.org/2022-wildfires/.  

Weather: Temperatures and relative humidity will begin to moderate across the fire area, while winds remain strong with gusts estimated to be near 50 mph, even into the late hours. Isolated dry thunderstorms cannot be ruled out due to high level moisture and instability moving across the fire area.

Smoke: An interactive smoke map at https://fire.airnow.gov/ allows you to zoom into your area to see the latest  smoke conditions.

Closures and Restrictions: The Carson National Forest has been under Stage 3 fire restrictions, which closes the Forest, since May 17.

Fire Information: Office Hours: 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM | Phone: 505-445-3203 | Email: 2022.midnight@firenet.gov Online: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/news/8147/  | https://www.facebook.com/CarsonNF