Bear Trap Fire – May 10th UPDATE Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains

Incident Command: New Mexico - Albuquerque Type 3 Team

Reported start date / time: May 1, 2022 – 1200

Cause: Undetermined. Size: 6,655 acres

Location: Bear Trap Canyon, San Mateo Mountains, Magdalena Ranger District, Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NGs). Socorro County, NM. See Map Attached. Containment: 0%

Fuels: Pine, Pinyon-Juniper and Grass.

Fire behavior: The Bear Trap Fire is exhibiting active fire behavior with isolated torching.

Weather: Temperature today will see a high near 82 with humidity in the single digits for long durations, sunny and drought conditions. South winds are 10-15 mph increasing to 15-20 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Tonight forecast: Mostly clear skies with a low around 50, southwest wind 20-25 mph decreasing to 10-15 after midnight. https://www.weather.gov/.

Resources on scene: 273: Firefighters from the USFS, BLM, BIA, NMF, County, local and private contractors are on scene with 11-Type 6 Engines, 9-Type 2 Handcrew, 2-Type 2 & 1-Type 3 Helicopters, Overhead, Air Tankers, Water Tenders, and Retardant Drops.

Strategy: The strategy for the Bear Trap Fire is full suppression.

Values at risk: At this time, the fire is not a threat to any communities, and there are no evacuations in effect.

Area Closure Order: An Area, Road and Trail Closure is in effect for the Bear Trap Fire per Order 03- 0726 on May 3rd at 5:00 pm until Sept 1 or until rescinded, whichever occurs first. 03-0726 Closure Order Stage 2 Fire Restrictions: On April 28th based on high fire danger and severe fire weather conditions, the Cibola NF & NGs implemented Stage 2 Fire Restrictions on the mountain districts to include the Magdalena Ranger District. Order 03-0724

Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public are always the first priority. Members of the public should stay away from Bear Trap Fire operations.

Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting and can cause air operations to cease. The public is reminded that “If you fly, we can’t!”

Smoke may be visible in the surrounding areas of Alamo, Datil, Magdalena, Socorro 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 online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website nmtracking.org. An interactive smoke map is available at https://fire.airnow.gov/, which allows you to zoom into areas to see the latest smoke conditions.

All Bear Trap Fire updates will be posted on the Incident Information System (InciWeb) for Bear Trap Fire, Cibola NF & NGs website, New Mexico Fire Information website, and the Cibola NF & NGs Facebook & Twitter pages. For more information on Bear Trap Fire contact: Magdalena Ranger District Office: 575-854-2281 Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands Supervisor’s Office: 505-346-3900

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Bear Trap Fire – May 9th UPDATE

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains

Bear Trap Fire – May 8th UPDATE

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains

Incident Command: New Mexico - Albuquerque Type 3 Team
Reported start date / time: May 1, 2022 – 1200
Cause: Undetermined.
Size: 5,619 acres
Location: Bear Trap Canyon, San Mateo Mountains, Magdalena Ranger District, Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NGs). Socorro County, NM. See Map Attached.
Containment: 0%
Fuels: Pine, Pinyon-Juniper and Grass.
Fire behavior: The Bear Trap Fire is exhibiting active fire behavior with isolated torching.
Weather: Temperatures today will be in the mid-80s with humidity in the single digits for long durations, sunny and drought conditions. Southwest winds are 20-25 mph increasing to 25-30 in the afternoon with gusts as high as 45 mph. Tonight forecast: Clear skies with a low around 49, West wind 25-30 mph decreasing to 15-20 after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 45 mph. Red Flag Warning in effect May 9th from 10 am until 10 pm and again May 9th from 9 am until 9 pm due to strong winds, several hours of single digit humidity, above average warmth and unstable atmosphere. https://www.weather.gov/.
Resources on scene: Firefighters from the USFS, BLM, BIA, NMF, County, local and private contractors are on scene with 10-Type 6 Engines, 6-Type 2 Handcrew, 2-Type 2 & 1-Type 3 Helicopters, Overhead, Air Tankers, Water Tenders, and Retardant Drops.
Strategy: The strategy for the Bear Trap Fire is full suppression.
Values at risk: At this time, the fire is not a threat to any communities, and there are no evacuations in effect.
Area Closure Order: An Area, Road and Trail Closure is in effect for the Bear Trap Fire per Order 03-0726 on May 3rd at 5:00 pm until Sept 1 or until rescinded, whichever occurs first. 03-0726 Closure Order
Stage 2 Fire Restrictions: On April 28th based on high fire danger and severe fire weather conditions, the Cibola NF & NGs implemented Stage 2 Fire Restrictions on the mountain districts to include the Magdalena Ranger District. Order 03-0724
Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public are always the first priority. Members of the public should stay away from Bear Trap Fire operations.
Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting and can cause air operations to cease. The public is reminded that “If you fly, we can’t!”
Smoke may be visible in the surrounding areas of Alamo, Datil, Magdalena, Socorro 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 online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website nmtracking.org. An interactive smoke map is available at https://fire.airnow.gov/, which allows you to zoom into areas to see the latest smoke conditions.

Bear Trap Fire – May 7th UPDATE

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountain

Incident Command: New Mexico - Albuquerque Type 3 Team

Reported start date / time: May 1, 2022 – 1200

 Bear Trap Fire – May 6th UPDATE
Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountain

Incident Command: New Mexico - Albuquerque Type 3 Team

Reported start date / time: May 1, 2022 - 1200

Cause: Undetermined

Size: 3,237 acres

Location: Bear Trap Canyon, San Mateo Mountains, Magdalena Ranger District, Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NGs). Socorro County, NM. See Map Attached

Containment: 0%

Fuels: Pine, Pinyon-Juniper and Grass

Fire behavior: The Bear Trap Fire is exhibiting moderate fire behavior with isolated torching

Weather: Temperatures today will be in the mid-80s with humidity at 7%, sunny and drought conditions. Northwest winds are 7-12 mph with gusts 20-25. Tonight forecast: Clear skies with a low around 49, West winds 5-15 mph. Red Flag Warning in effect May 7th from 11 am until 10 pm due to strong winds, low humidity, near record warmth and a very unstable atmosphere. https://www.weather.gov/

Resources on scene: Firefighters from the USFS, BLM, BIA, NMF, County, local and private contractors are on scene with 1 Type 3 Engine, 1 Type 4 Engine, 12 Type 6 Engines, 6 Type 2 Handcrew & Type 3 Helicopter, Overhead, Air Tankers, Water Tenders, and Retardant Drops

Strategy: The strategy for the Bear Trap Fire is full suppression

Values at risk: At this time, the fire is not a threat to any communities, and there are no evacuations in effect

Area Closure Order: An Area, Road and Trail Closure is in effect for the Bear Trap Fire per Order 03-0726 on May 3rd at 5:00 pm until Sept 1 or until rescinded, whichever occurs first. 03-0726 Closure Order

Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public are always the first priority. Members of the public should stay away from Bear Trap Fire operations

Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting and can cause air operations to cease

The public is reminded that “If you fly, we can’t!”

Smoke may be visible in the surrounding areas of Alamo, Datil, Magdalena, Socorro 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 online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website nmtracking.org. An interactive smoke map is available at https://fire.airnow.gov/, which allows you to zoom into areas to see the latest smoke conditions

All Bear Trap Fire updates will be posted on the Incident Information System (InciWeb) for Bear Trap Fire, Cibola NF & NGs website, New Mexico Fire Information website, and the Cibola NF & NGs Facebook  & Twitter pages

For more information on Bear Trap Fire contact:
Magdalena Ranger District Office: 575-854-2281
Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands Supervisor’s Office: 505-346-3900

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Bear Trap Fire – May 5th UPDATE

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains

Incident Command: New Mexico - Albuquerque Type 3 Team

Reported start date / time: May 1, 2022 - 1200

 Bear Trap Fire – May 4th UPDATE

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains

Incident Command: New Mexico Albuquerque Type 3 Team

Reported start date / time: May 1, 2022 - 1200 Cause: Unknown

Size: 2,309 acres

Location: Bear Trap Canyon, San Mateo Mountains, Magdalena Ranger District, Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NGs). Socorro County, NM. See Map Attached.

Containment: 0%

Fuels: Pine, Pinyon-Juniper and Grass

Fire behavior: The Bear Trap Fire is exhibiting moderate fire behavior with isolated torching

Weather: Temperatures today will be in the 70s with humidity at 7%, fair skies and drought conditions. West winds are 15-20 mph with gusts as high as 30 mph. Red Flag Warning in effect from May 4th 10 am – 9 pm. Tonight forecast: Clear skies with a low around 40, West wind 20-25 mph decreasing to 10-15 mph after midnight. https://www.weather.gov/.

Resources on scene: Firefighters from the Cibola National Forest, BLM, BIA, NM State Forestry and private contractors are on scene with 1 Type 4 Engine, 1 Type 3 Engine, 8 Type 6 Engines, 2 Type 2 Handcrew, Type 2 & Type 3 Helicopters, Overhead, Air Tankers, Water Tenders, and Retardant Drops.

Strategy: The strategy for the Bear Trap Fire is full suppression.

Values at risk: At this time, the fire is not a threat to any communities, and there are no evacuations in effect.

Safety: The health and safety of firefighters and the public are always the first priority. Members of the public should stay away from Bear Trap Fire operations. Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting and can cause air operations to cease.

The public is reminded that “If you fly, we can’t!”

Smoke may be visible in the surrounding areas of Alamo, Datil, Magdalena, Socorro 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 online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website nmtracking.org. An interactive smoke map is available at https://fire.airnow.gov/, which allows you to zoom into areas to see the latest smoke conditions. All Bear Trap Fire updates will be posted on the Incident Information System (InciWeb) for Bear Trap Fire, Cibola NF & NGs website, New Mexico Fire Information website, and the Cibola NF & NGs Facebook  & Twitter pages.

For more information on Bear Trap Fire contact:

Magdalena Ranger District Office: 575-854-2281
Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands Supervisor’s Office: 505-346-3900 

Bear Trap Fire
Area, Road and Trails Closure Order

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains

Order Number 03-0726

The Bear Trap Fire Area Closure, Road and Trails Closure Order 03-0726 has been issued for National Forest System lands listed in Exhibit A within the Magdalena Ranger District, Cibola National Forest, Socorro County, New Mexico. This Order will be effective on Tuesday May 3, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. and shall remain in effect until September 1, 2022, or until rescinded, whichever occurs first.

he purpose of this Order is to protect public from wildfire and post wildfire hazards and provide for firefighter safety during wildland fire suppression and emergency operations on the Bear Trap Fire.

Review the map for closed National Forest System roads (NFS), trails, trailheads and campgrounds included in this closure:
This Order supersedes Forest Order 03-0725, dated May 2, 2022. 

Smoke from the Bear Trap Fire may impact travel on I-25 from Socorro to San Antonio, NM. Smoke will concentrate in low lying areas in the early mornings and dissipate as the day heats up.Smoke from the Bear Trap Fire may be visible in the surrounding areas of Alamo, Datil and Magdalena.

Bear Trap Fire – May 2nd Evening UPDATE

Magdalena Ranger District - San Mateo Mountains