NM wildfire outlook above normal for most of state

Crews work to secure containment lines on the Mogote Hill Fire near Wagon Mound this weekend. Photo courtesy NM Forestry

​By Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
​
National fire weather forecasters warn that most of New Mexico will face above-normal fire potential this month, and those conditions will worsen until at least until the monsoon season begins in July.

The National Interagency Fire Center issued its April wildfire outlook Tuesday, presenting a series of maps showing New Mexico with snow pack far below normal, along with severe drought and above normal average temperatures expected throughout the summer. 

Those factors combine to make the state, particularly the western two-thirds, at high risk of wildfires beginning in May, according to forecasters. 

‘It’s bad’: How drought, lack of snowpack and federal cuts could spell wildfire disaster in NM

So far in New Mexico this year, 222 wildfires have started, affecting 31,675 acres. Humans caused the vast majority of those fires, according to the Southwest Coordination Center. The Mogote Hill Fire near Wagon Mound, which burned an estimated 15,000 acres, ranks as the biggest New Mexico fire so far this year. 

Last week, New Mexico State Forestry released daily wildfire awareness tips, including how and when to safely burn debris. 

The above-normal wildfire potential occurs amid federal cuts to the United States Forest Service, including probationary employees who often had wildfire suppression training.

Proposed federal lease terminations also include two New Mexico wildfire dispatch centers covering one-third of the state, though U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich’s office recently told Source New Mexico that he had received “assurances” that the dispatch centers would stay open. 

A Heinrich spokesperson noted, however, that his office was still awaiting  official confirmation about the dispatch centers from the General Services Administration. The Heinrich spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday as to whether that official confirmation had yet arrived. 

Source New Mexico is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Source New Mexico maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Goldberg for questions: [email protected].