Midnight Fire At 3,500 Acres, 0% Containment Saturday Morning

View of smoke from Midnight Fire, which has burned 3,500 acres as of 8 a.m. Saturday. Photo by Rosalie Garcia

MIDNIGHT FIRE NEWS

The Midnight Fire burning six miles north of El Rito in Potrero Canyon has grown to 3,500 acres with no containment. There are approximately 200 ground and air resources assigned with more being ordered. Structure protection remains in place in Potrero Canyon. The cause is still under investigation.

Fire behavior may increase with continued hot and dry conditions across the fire area today. Firefighters will continue suppression repair around the fire. Please fill out the Private Property Suppression Repair Survey if your property sustained damage from suppression activities. (https://tinyurl.com/suppressionrepair) This information will assist fire officials and counties in evaluating properties and contacting owners. 

Resources from the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fires were sent to support firefighting efforts on the Midnight Fire on the Carson National Forest yesterday. This fire was estimated last night to be 500 acres and is burning at the edge of private lands in Potrero Canyon. It currently has 0% containment. More than 200 firefighters as well as air resources will remain engaged in that area today. For emergency alerts in Rio Arriba County, sign up here: https://local.nixle.com/signup/widget/i/6807 

Continued hot and dry weather will persist today and through the weekend bringing critical fire weather conditions on Monday. Temperatures are expected to be in the mid-80s with a 15-40% relative humidity and a small chance of isolated thunderstorms. Winds will be out of the west-northwest today with sustained winds around 13 mph and gusts to 25 mph.  Closures and Restrictions: All National Forests in New Mexico have closures or restrictions in place due to extreme fire danger. To learn more about these closures and restrictions, visit: https://tinyurl.com/bdy5y99r. Information related to fire restrictions across public and private land can be found at: https://nmfireinfo.com/fire-restrictions/

After Fire Flooding and Recovery Resources: After Wildfire New Mexico guide https://www.afterwildfirenm.org/ | Hermits Peak & Calf Canyon Fire Burned Area

Emergency Response information https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8104/.

Smoke: An interactive smoke map at fire.airnow.gov/ allows you to zoom into your area to see the latest smoke conditions.

Fire Information: Office Hours: 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM | Phone: 505-356-2636 | Email: 2022.hermitspeak@firenet.gov

Online: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8069/ | https://www.facebook.com/CalfCanyonHermitsPeak| nmfireinfo.com |tinyurl.com/HermitsYouTube | Santa Fe NF |