Andrew Nordquist – Incident Commander

Acres: 11,634

Start Date: 6/25/2025

Completion: 87 %

Location: Located in the Coyote Ranger District, 8 miles north of New Mexico State Road 96 and west of the Chama River Canyon Wilderness.

Personnel: 158

Fuels: Oak brush, ponderosa pine, pinyon-juniper

Resources: 3 hotshot crews, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack crew, 2 suppression modules, 5 engines, 3 water tenders (2 support; 1 tactical).

Highlights: Fire crews  conducted mop-up operations while interior pockets of vegetation continued to burn. Mop-up involves extinguishing or removing burning material along or near the control line, felling snags, or moving logs so they won’t roll downhill. 

This evening, a spot fire was discovered outside the containment lines near Laguna Peak. Fire crews are actively engaged in full suppression efforts using hotshot crews, engines, and helicopters to drop water.

Smoke: Light winds today were slow to clear smoke, resulting in hazy conditions and MODERATE air quality across northern New Mexico.  Smoke from the fire traveled east this afternoon with impacts in communities along the Rio Chama including Abiquiu and the Espanola Valley briefly reaching UNHEALTHY FOR SENITIVE GROUPS levels.  Tonight, a weak front pushes in from the east and winds will pick up overnight bringing in moist air from the east. This moisture will help thunderstorms over the weekend that will help to improve air quality, but hazy conditions will persist.  Tonight, the greatest impacts will be in communities along the Rio Chama near the fire. However, smoke from fires in Arizona and Colorado may also be adding smoke into New Mexico.  Overall, air quality is expected to stay in the GOOD to MODERATE levels this weekend with hazy skies.

Weather:  Winds from the west and northwest this evening will taper off after sunset, leading to light winds overnight.Smoke will likely drain south into the upper Rio Grande Valley reaching as far south as Santa Fe.

Tomorrow, expectanother very warm to hot day with dry westerly breezes developing during the afternoon hours. This will help to transport the smoke plume east over the upper Rio Grande Valley and northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Winds will lighten after sunset switching to east-southeast overnight. These southeast winds will increase surface moisture at the fire location resulting in scattered shower and storm development during the afternoon and evening hours both days this weekend.

Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public are always the highest priority. Please avoid the area while crews manage the Laguna Wildfire. Drones and firefighting aircraft are a dangerous mix and could lead to accidents or slow down wildfire operations. If you fly, we can’t.    

Closures: : Closure Order 03-10-01-25-09 is in place and includes all National Forest System lands, roads, and trails within Township 24N Range 1E Sections 1,2,11,12,13,14,23,24,25,26 and Township 24N Range 2E Sections 4-9 and Sections14-32 and Township 25N Range 1E Sections 25,35,36 and Township 25N Range 2E Sections 30-32 of the New Mexico Principal Meridian within the Coyote Ranger District. The purpose of this Order is to protect the public’s health and safety during firefighting operations for the Laguna Wildfire. See attached map for the closure area.

More Information: 505-607-0879 | claudia.brookshire@usda.gov| x.com/SantafeNF | facebook.com/santafeNF | Inciweb-Laguna Wildfire | NM Fire Info

About the Forest Service: The USDA Forest Service has for more than 100 years brought people and communities together to answer the call of conservation. Grounded in world-class science and technology– and rooted in communities–the Forest Service connects people to nature and to each other. The Forest Service cares for shared natural resources in ways that promote lasting economic, ecological, and social vitality. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, maintains the largest wildland fire and forestry research organizations in the world. The Forest Service also has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 900 million forested acres within the U.S., of which over 130 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.

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A flash flood swept through the Riverview RV Park on Tuesday, July 8, killing two children and one resident as heavy monsoon rains triggered a sudden surge of water from the nearby Rio Ruidoso.

Security footage from the park shows rain pooling around RV trailers, a pavilion, and the home of park owner Jason Fulcher. Fulcher is seen driving to check the river’s condition before discovering floodwaters rushing down Suddreth Drive. He returned to the park, shouting warnings to campers.

Within minutes, muddy water inundated the park, damaging rows of RVs. A family from Fort Bliss Army Post in El Paso was among those caught in the flood. Two children, ages 4 and 7, and a resident of the park were killed.

Footage shows a vehicle fleeing the area as water surged in, followed by a floating metal dumpster. A plastic float drifted through the park, Fulcher’s truck was swept away, and the pavilion was submerged. The camera cut off at 3:25 p.m. as floodwaters tore through Fulcher’s home.

More: Family recounts parents’ efforts to save children in Ruidoso flooding. GoFundMe launched