Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fires June 16, 2022, Daily Update

Highlights: A very dry air mass is driving fire activity. Yesterday with gusts and outflow winds, fire continued to back into the Pecos River system. Forecasted dry thunderstorms today have the potential to cause localized increased fire activity. As storms transition to wetting rain over the weekend, fire personnel are preparing for the possibility of dangerous debris flow and flooding from the burned areas. To better monitor rainfall, especially along the NM Highway 518 corridor, Remote Automated Weather Stations (RAWS) are being relocated. The Mora fire camp is closing as fire managers move resources to more strategic locations. A live virtual community meeting will be hosted tomorrow at 6 p.m. on the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fire Facebook Page.

Operations:

North Zone (SWIMT1):  The northwestern division of the fire above NM Hwy 518 continued preparing contingency lines, grading, chipping, using masticators, and removing material. Progress is continuing on the north contingency line as road improvement is completed, allowing access to the line from NM 518. Suppression repair work continues in the east and south, with fence line repair completed west of NM 121. Repair teams are moving into Sierra Bonita and NM 434 corridor. An initial attack task force is in place to support local units in the event of new starts. Firefighters continue to patrol, monitor and hold the existing fire lines.

South Zone (SWIMT2): Fire activity remains high as near record-setting temperatures and strong winds continue, creating highly visible smoke throughout the fire area. Winds will continue to push from the west, keeping humidity low and temperatures high. Active areas of the fire from Tuesday will continue to remain active, primarily around the Rio Mora drainage and the Trampas Fire burn scar as the fire pushes up slope. The fire has not crossed the Hamilton Mesa Trail and continues to burn towards the northeast into the wilderness. The fire will also continue to consume interior islands of unburned fuel within the fire perimeter throughout today’s burning period. Crews continue to focus on repair work along the Skyline Trail, which include chipping, mop-up efforts, and cleaning up downed debris and dozer line. Firefighters continue to monitor and suppress fire activity along Hamilton Mesa Trail. Crews will also continue with structure protection around Beatty’s Cabin and North Pecos. There are no changes to road closures or evacuation orders in the fire area.

Evacuations: To view real-time evacuation information around the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fires, visit: https://tinyurl.com/HermitsPeak for the evacuation map. The Ready, Set, Go evacuation guide is available in English and Spanish here: https://tinyurl.com/RSGNM. For disaster assistance resources, visit: https://www.nmdhsem.org/2022-wildfires/.

Weather: Dry thunderstorms are forecast for Friday, changing to thunderstorms with wetting rain over the weekend. For potential flooding information, visit an interactive map at: http://tinyurl.com/calfcanyonfloodmap

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/.

Suppression Repair Property Survey: Suppression repair is a series of immediate post-fire actions taken to repair damages and minimize potential soil erosion and impacts resulting from fire suppression activities and usually begins before the fire is contained, and before the demobilization of an Incident Management Team. To request support with suppression repair activities: https://www.tinyurl.com/suppressionrepair

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 |

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