Single Publication

Acres: 38,225 acres
 
Containment: 63%

Cause: Undetermined

Total Personnel: 395

Start Date: May 1, 2022

Location: San Mateo Mountains, Magdalena Ranger District, Socorro County, NM

Fuels: Pine, Pinyon-Juniper and Grass 

Highlights: All areas of the fire are now in mop up, patrol or suppression repair status. This means that after almost a month, fire suppression work is winding down and the work of fire recovery has begun. Crews will remain vigilant through the Red Flag Warning days over the holiday weekend and will continue to be available for initial attack if any new fires start in the area. A daily operational briefing video explaining details of the Bear Trap Fire operations can be viewed on the Cibola National Forest Facebook page.  

Operations: Patrol and mop up operations will continue throughout the day today on the southwest part of the fire as crews work inward to extinguish fuel that is still burning. All other areas have pivoted to focus more on suppression repair. Efforts including chipping of cut trees, dozer line rehabilitation and establishing erosion control will increase under the guidance of Resource Advisors. 

Weather: The National Weather Service has issued Red Flag Warnings for today and Sunday and a Fire Weather Watch for Monday because of high temperatures, strong winds and very low humidities. We encourage everyone to be extremely careful this holiday weekend to reduce the possibility of new fire starts. Firefighting resources in the area are already stretched thin and the dangerous weather means any new fires could be very challenging to contain.  

Closures and Restrictions: The Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands (NF & NGs) have issued a fire area, road and trail closure (No. 03-0728) to protect public health and safety during fire operations on the Bear Trap Fire. This closure order expands the previous closure area to provide for continued firefighter safety during wildland fire suppression and emergency operations. This order supersedes the previous order No. 03-0726. Based on high fire danger and severe fire weather conditions, the Cibola NF & NGs have also implemented Stage 2 Fire Restrictions on the Magdalena Ranger District (No. 03-0724). Both closure orders and maps are available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/cibola/alerts-notices.  

Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public always are the first priority. Members of the public should stay away from Bear Trap Fire operations. A temporary flight restriction (TFR) is in place over the area, which includes unmanned aircraft, or drones. More information on the dangers drones pose to wildland firefighting aircraft and personnel on the ground can be found at https://www.nifc.gov/drones/.  

Smoke: Smoke from the Bear Trap Fire and other nearby fires might be visible in the areas of Alamo, Datil, Magdalena, Socorro, Winston, and San Antonio, NM. 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 at the New Mexico Department of Health Environmental Public Health Tracking website: nmtracking.org. An interactive smoke map at https://fire.airnow.gov/ allows you to zoom into your area to see the latest smoke conditions.