Cuervito Fire Final Update – June 3, 2021

This will be the last update on the Cuervito Fire unless conditions change significantly.

Start date: May 9, 2021                                         

Cause: Lightning           

Location: 9 miles east of Pecos and 3 miles southwest of the Barillas Lookout on the Pecos/Las Vegas Ranger District of the Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF)

Size: 1,621 acres after implementing a management strategy to add low- to moderate-intensity fire to the ground to achieve resource benefit and reduce the risk of high-severity wildfire in the future.  

Resources: Type 2 initial attack (IA) crew, 1 engine

Fuels:  Ponderosa pine, piñon-juniper, Douglas fir and oak brush

Operations: Firefighters have been mopping up along the edges of the Cuervito Fire for the last few days. Unless conditions change significantly, the IA crew will demobilize at the end of shift Friday, and local resources will continue to monitor the fire. Once the area dries out from recent moisture, we may see unburned pockets of fuel in the fire’s interior burn out and produce smoke.

Weather: Chance of showers and thunderstorms this evening with winds out of the northeast at 10 to 15 mph. A 40% chance of precipitation tomorrow could bring additional moisture.

Values at risk: Private property nearby

Smoke:  Smoke management is a key part of the planning and implementation of managed wildfire. Unburned pockets of fuel in the fire’s interior may ignite and produce smoke that would be visible from Santa Fe, Pecos, Las Vegas, Rowe, Glorieta, La Cueva, North and South San Ysidro, Ilfeld, San Jose, San Juan, Tecolote, Soham, Ribera, Serafina, Bernal, Anton Chico, Mineral Hill, San Geronimo and Pablo as well as the I-25 corridor. An interactive smoke map at https://fire.airnow.gov/ allows you to zoom into the Santa Fe area to see the latest smoke information.

Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public are always the first priority. Smoke-sensitive individuals and people with respiratory problems or heart disease are encouraged to take precautionary measures. Information on air quality and protecting your health can be found online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website at https://nmtracking.org/fire.

Fire updates will be posted on the SFNF website, New Mexico Fire Information website, Inciweb and on the SFNF Facebook and Twitter.

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