Single Publication

Northern New Mexico Incident Management Team to assume command of the Indios Fire

Daily Update – Sunday, June 9, 2024

Acres: 11,500                                                                         

Start Date: May 19, 2024

Location: 7 miles north of the village of Coyote, NM               

Personnel: 321

Completion: 86%                                                                    

Fuels: Timber

Highlights:At 7:00 AM on Monday, June 10, the Southwest Area Incident Management Team 4 will transfer command of the Indios Fire to the Northern New Mexico Incident Management Team, led by Incident Commander Luke McLarty. Team 4 extends its sincere thanks to the local communities for their support, gratitude, and hospitality throughout this incident. Due to successful firefighting efforts, 86% of objectives are now complete, and resources are either demobilizing to return to their home units or reassigning to assist other wildfires across the country. As a result of decreased fire activity, written updates will now be provided every other day moving forward. Prior to their departure, Team 4 will host a public open house tonight, Sunday, June 9, from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM in the lecture hall at the Coronado High School, 1903 NM-96, Gallina, NM.

Operations: The Indios Fire has now reached the point where the percentage of completion (objectives for confinement, point protection, and monitoring) and containment (where the fire can be reasonably expected to stop spreading) are in alignment and no further fire growth is expected. While these percentages now align at 86%, progress will continue to be reported in terms of percent completion throughout the incident. The remaining 14% is not officially reported as contained because no control measures are in place on the northern end of the fire due to steep, inaccessible terrain in the Chama River Canyon Wilderness. Fire managers expect little to no fire spread in this area due to the limited vegetation and rocky terrain. Large logs and stumps continue to smolder in some areas, but most lighter fuels have been consumed in the interior. Firefighters completed repair and chipping work on Forest Roads 64 and 169. On the west side, crews continued road repairs using graders and bulldozers, and installed water bars to minimize erosion. The southern and eastern sides of the fire remained quiet as crews conducted their daily patrols. Air operations conducted a reconnaissance flight early yesterday to familiarize the incoming Incident Management Team with areas of interest across the fire.

Weather: Today, a high pressure system to the east will push thunderstorms towards the fire area. With the increased chance of thunderstorms, temperatures should be lower and humidity values higher than the previous day. Lower temperatures and greater chances of thunderstorms are anticipated for Monday. Conditions are forecasted to be warm and dry though the remainder of the week.  

Smoke: Minimal smoke impacts are expected for the foreseeable future. Light dispersed visible smoke will diminish over time. Smoke sensors have been installed and will remain in the communities of Coyote, Gallina, Cañones, and at the Monastery of Christ in the Desert. View an interactive smoke map at https://fire.airnow.gov/. Learn more about smoke impacts at https://www.env.nm.gov/air-quality/fire-smoke-links/.

Closures: The Santa Fe National Forest has issued an emergency area closure for the Indios Fire. The full closure order (No. 03-12-05-23-22) and map are available on Inciweb. Camping and water will be available at the Coyote Ranger Station for Continental Divide Trail hikers impacted by this closure.

Safety: A temporary flight restriction (TFR) is in place over the area, which includes uncrewed aircraft systems or drones. More information on the dangers drones pose to wildland firefighting aircraft and personnel on the ground can be found at: https://uas.nifc.gov/. Due to reduced use of aircraft, the TFR will be lifted on Sunday at 9:00 PM.

inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/nmsnf-indios-wildfire / nmfireinfo.com 

575-323-2290 / x.com/SantafeNF / facebook.com/santafeNF / 2024.indios@firenet.gov