May 24, 2018 
New Fire Start – Kellar Fire
INITIAL FIRE UPDATE: 5/24/2018, 8:15pm
Jurisdiction: Lincoln National Forest, Guadalupe Ranger District
Date/Time Detected: 5/22/2018, 9:52am
Location: Northeast of Queen, NM
Lat/Long: Lat: 32°,12′,42.92″, Lon: 104°,40′,45.47″,
Legal Description: T24S, R22E, SWSW Sec 14
Firefighting Resources: Type 3 Incident Management Team, 3 Hot Shot Crews, 2 Engines, 1 Helicopter.
Total personnel: 75
Values at Risk: Community of Queen, NM, Sitting Bull Falls Recreation Area
Hazards: Heat, Terrain
Fuels: Pinyon Juniper, Desert scrub
Size: 9 acres
Containment: 0%
Cause: Lightning Caused
5/24/2018 Status:
A lightning strike started the low-intensity Kellar Fire, giving fire managers on the Lincoln National Forest the opportunity to use a natural ignition to restore fire to the landscape and achieve multiple resource benefits.
The Kellar Fire is approximately 9 acres just northeast of Queen, NM. Fire managers looked at the fire’s location, conditions on the ground, and historic fire behavior to assess risks and predict fire behavior. The analysis determined that the Kellar Fire is a good candidate to manage for multiple objectives, including mitigating the risk of future high-intensity wildfire and improving long-term forest health.
A Type-3 incident management team, three hot shot crews and two engines were ordered to the fire to support fire operations, which will increase in activity over the next 4-5 days. The next fire update will be mid-morning tomorrow.
5/23/18 Status: Firefighters responded to the Kellar Fire shortly after it was reported yesterday morning. The 4-acre fire was determined to be lightning-caused and is smoldering in pinyon juniper and desert scrub. The Kellar Fire is located in the burn scar of the Last Chance Fire of 2011. Precipitation today kept fire activity low. Firefighters will return to the scene tomorrow to continue fire operations.
Regarding smoke, in the event of a prescribed fire or wildfire: If visibility becomes lower because of smoke, please visit the NM Department of Health’s smoke page: https://nmtracking.org/fire
PIO: Laura Rabon, laurarabon@fs.fed.us 575-434-7211. Loretta Benavidez, llbenavidez@fs.fed.us 575-430-5546
NM Fire Info 
Comments are closed.