Single Publication

Midnight Fire June 15, 2022, Daily Update, 08:00 AM

Acres: 4,905 | Containment: 12% | Total personnel: 382 | 
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 12% on the Midnight Fire. Firefighters saw a decrease in fire activity on the east and northeast sides of the fire when the fuels transitioned into areas of fuels treatments and prior-year burn scars.

Operations: Yesterday, during an extreme fire weather day, firefighters’ suppression efforts were aided to the north and east by previous fire scars and fuel treatments (thinning and other tactics) that had been completed by the Carson National Forest. A mix of fixed wing and rotor aircraft assisted the firefighters throughout the day to slow spread and secure line. Crews and heavy equipment worked to improve a mix of roads and dozer lines along the northeast perimeter of the fire. A combination of handline and dozer line was completed across the northern edge of the fire. Firefighters were able to contain all spot fires and will continue this work through another day of extremely dry conditions.  
 
Today, firefighters will focus on holding lines along the western perimeter. This will include a mix of air and ground resources checking for signs of heat or smoke along the containment line. Firefighters will patrol the established lines to the south, looking for areas of heat that might pose a risk to the containment lines in the future. Aircraft will focus efforts on the northwest corner of the fire to prevent spread in that direction. Dozer lines and road systems on the east and northern sides will continue to be improved using chipping and debris removal, strengthening lines to aid crews in containment efforts. 

We will have a virtual public meeting tomorrow evening, June 16. The meeting will be live streamed to the Carson National Forest Facebook page at 6pm. A recording of last night’s public meeting was uploaded to the Facebook page last night and available to view anytime. 

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: Conditions will continue to be hot, dry, and windy. Relative humidity values will remain low throughout the day, while winds will stay strong at high elevations 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