Single Publication

Midnight Fire June 17, 2022, Daily Update, 08:00 AM

Acres: 4,896 
Containment: 69% 
Total personnel: 351  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: Containment has increased to 69%, and acreage has decreased due to more accurate mapping. Firefighters will begin suppression repair efforts in areas where containment has been established and held for the past several days.

Operations: Yesterday, firefighters focused on holding containment lines throughout the day during high wind conditions. Crews also began to mop up along the fire line, extinguishing or removing burning material near control lines down to the mineral soil, felling fire damaged trees, and cooling ash pits to make a fire line less likely to escape and to reduce residual smoke. As this work is completed, these portions of the fire line are considered contained.
  Today, Engines and crews will continue patrol efforts with support from aviation assets as weather conditions permit. In addition, firefighters will begin suppression repair efforts in areas where containment has been established and held for the past several days. Suppression repair is a series of immediate post-fire actions taken to repair damages and minimize potential soil erosion and impacts resulting from fire suppression activities. This work repairs the hand and dozer fire lines, roads, trails, staging areas, safety zones and drop points used during fire suppression effort and usually begins before the fire is contained.  

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: A deep southernly surge of moisture will enter the region on Friday with a continued downward trend in temperatures and an upward trend in moisture and thunderstorms. Moderating fire weather conditions are expected along with increased threats for flash flooding in the burn scar area. Winds will remain out of the south with gusts up to 25 mph.

After Fire Flooding and Recovery Resources: Interactive flood and debris flow map: www.tinyurl.com/hermitspeak | After Wildfire New Mexico guide: https://www.afterwildfirenm.org/

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