Pine Lodge Fire Update July 2, 2019

Incident Name – Pine Lodge Fire

Jurisdiction: Lincoln National Forest, Smokey Bear Ranger District

Size: 14,043 acres

Containment: 47%

Containment Strategy: Full Suppression

Cause: Unknown, Under Investigation

Date/Time Detected: Thursday, June 19, 2019, at approximately 2:00 p.m.

General Location: Off Highway 246 about 4 miles up Forest Service Road 130 near the Capitan Mountain Wilderness.

Lat/Long: Lat: 33°, 37′ 28.6″ Long:-105°, 14′, 40″

Legal Description: T8S, R17E, SESE Sec 10

Total Personnel: Approximately 145

Fuel Type: Grass, Pinyon-Juniper, Mix Conifer

There will be a community meeting, tonight, July 2 at 6:30. It will be held at the Traylor Gym on the Capitan school grounds. The Pecos Type 3 Incident Management Team will address information updates, operational decisions and future strategies.

Summary: The Pine Lodge Fire has reached Capitan Peak and Sunset Peak and is visible on the south side of the Capitan Mountain Range and from Highway 70. Fire activity atop the mountain is minimal, as it is burning on rocky, sparsely vegetated slopes. Fire activity near containment lines continues to consume unburned pockets of fuel, but all fire lines are holding well.

Operations: Crews will continue patrolling and putting out hot spots near Seven Cabins Road and along Highway 246. Fire activity is being monitored in the Copeland Canyon and Peachtree Canyon drainages to keep the fire from moving west. Fire may continue to creep further into the wilderness. New technology has been installed which allows fire officials to remotely view fire activity around the clock. Rehabilitation work from suppression activity is ongoing. Crews will be repairing dozer lines in the Pine Lodge area.

Weather: Parts of the fire received light rain yesterday and clouds covered most of the fire area, which helped kept fire activity moderate. Atmospheric moisture continues to increase today, bringing a better chance of rain.

Firefighting Resources: There are 145 fire personnel and support resources remaining with the Pecos Type 3 Team. Additional cooperating and assisting organizations include State of New Mexico, Lincoln County Sheriff Department, NM State Police and Otero County Electric Coop.

Closures: Closures along Highway 246, between Capitan and Roswell, have been lifted. The public is advised to remain cautious while driving on Highway 246 because of heavy fire traffic.

A forest closure is in place for the Capitan Mountains east of Capitan Gap. Public entry into the area is prohibited. Official closure information and map is posted on the Pine Lodge Fire Inciweb page. All other areas within the Smokey Bear Ranger District are open for recreation. Visitors are reminded to always be careful with fire while enjoying our forests.

For information, see
Inciweb                 https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6397

Facebook              https://www.facebook.com/LincolnNF

NM Fire Info        https://nmfireinfo.com/

Call Pine Lodge Fire Information at 575-208-4402.

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