Tanques Wildfire Update

Friday, July 26, 2024

Location: Northwest corner of the Santa Fe National Forest in the Cuba Ranger District, approximately 27 miles north of Cuba, NM.

Start Date: July 18, 2024

Size: 2,745 acres with a planned perimeter of 7,000 acres

Percent completed: 35 %

Cause: Lightning

Vegetation: The wildfire is burning in ponderosa pine, pinyon-juniper, and oak.

Resources: 36 personnel including aerial resources

Overview: Santa Fe National Forest will manage the fire as a Type 3 incident with a confine and contain strategy.  This means crews will manage the fire within a predetermined area (confine) and use points to stop the fire’s spread (contain). To accomplish this strategy, crews will conduct firing operations using aerial and hand ignitions within a 7000-acre planned perimeter as early as July 25 and use roads, hand lines, and natural barriers as containment lines.

The fire is burning in the Moya National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) project area and a landscape that has been thinned and treated with prescribed fire in the past. The primary objectives for the Tanques Wildfire are to provide for firefighter and public safety and improve wildlife habitat.

Highlights: Fire held within the fire perimeter overnight. Today, aerial ignitions, conducted by a helicopter, continue within the project area. Crews are managing fire activity and preparing for thunderstorms later this evening.

Weather: After a relatively calm night Thursday night, an uptick in afternoon thunderstorm activity in the fire area is forecast Friday through the weekend.

Closure Order: A temporary area and road closure is in effect to protect the public’s health and safety during firefighting operations for the Tanques Wildfire. The closure order is available on the Santa Fe National Forest’s website – Closure Order 03-10-02-24-11 .

Safety: The health and safety of firefighter and the public are always the highest priority. Please avoid the area while crews manage the Tanques 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.

Smoke: Smoke may be visible from communities along Highway 112 including El Vado and Llaves, NM and from the Jicarilla Apache Nation Indian Reservation. View an interactive smoke map on AirNow Fire and Smoke Map. To learn more about smoke impacts visit Wildfire and Prescribed Fire Smoke Resources (nm.gov).

Fire Information:

Contact Claudia Brookshire, Public Affairs Officer, Santa Fe National Forest

Phone: 505-607-0879 (available from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm)

Email: claudia.brookshire@usda.gov

Links: Santa Fe National Forest website, New Mexico Fire Info, Inciweb, and Santa Fe National Forest social media (Facebook and X).

Tanques Wildfire updates will be provided weekly.

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