Southwest Area

Incident Management Team

TEAM 5 – Dave Gesser– INCIDENT COMMANDER

Containment increases on the South Fork and Salt fires 

Daily Update, Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Mescalero Apache Tribe Emergency Operations Center: 575-464-9214

Village of Ruidoso Emergency Operations Center: 575-258-6900

Fire Information Phone: 575-323-8378 or 575-323-8258 

Media Information Phone: 575-323-8053

Phone Line Hours: 8 am – 8 pm

Email: 2024.southfork@firenet.gov

Acres:  South Fork – 17,556; Salt – 7,947

Start Date: June 17, 2024

Location: South Fork – Ruidoso Area; Salt – 7 mile west of Mescalero, NM

Personnel: 1,006

Containment: South Fork – 54%; Salt – 38%

Fuels: mixed conifer, grass, pine/juniper                                    

Resources: The South Fork and Salt fires are currently staffed with 12 crews, 8 helicopters, 61 engines, 9 bulldozers, and 18 water tenders.

Highlights: Containment on the South Fork and Salt fires increased as crews continue working hard to seek out and address residual heat sources across the fire area. 

Fire Activity: Fire activity has reduced significantly across the South Fork and Salt fires thanks to persistent scattered storms. While pockets of large, heavy, dead/downed fuels, snags, and stumps continue to smolder, growth potential along the perimeter will be very minimal. 

On Monday, scattered thunderstorms caused localized flooding again, but crews were still able to access many areas of the South Fork and Salt fires and made good progress on structural assessments and containment operations. 

Today, crews will focus on constructing direct control lines and mopping up hot spots where needed. Mop up will continue until full containment is reached, including removal of hazard trees and securing the fire perimeter. Additionally, crews will assist utility cooperators in gaining access to damaged areas to conduct assessments.

Weather: The fire area experienced noticeably warmer conditions on Monday. Today, temperatures will remain in the high 80s with lower chances of isolated showers. Wednesday will bring more moisture and higher potential for scattered rains.

Smoke: Smoke production will remain light to moderate on Monday. Additional details are available at https://outlooks.wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlook/430b2c05.

Evacuations: No evacuations are in place. However, designated "NO ENTRY/EXCLUSION ZONES" remain in place in some areas of the village. Use www.lincolncountynm.gov and www.ruidoso-nm.gov/south-fork-fire or contact the Emergency Operations Centers for more information. 

Tribal members who have been displaced outside of the Mescalero Apache Reservation due to the fires are strongly encouraged to contact the Tribe's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to help you and your families get back to the reservation. If you're stranded out of town at other evacuation sites, please call the EOC at 575-464-9214 for more details.

Closures: A South Fork Fire Emergency Closure Order was issued on June 20, 2024, for national forest lands within the Smokey Bear Ranger District. The identified areas, and roads and trails therein, are closed to public access to allow firefighting personnel to work and through the fire area safely. More information is available at www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/lincoln/alerts-notices/?aid=88199. 

A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the fire area. Public/commercial drone flights are also prohibited within this area. If you fly, we may have to ground our air resources. Visit https://www.tfr.faa.gov for more information.

More information:

Inciweb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/nmmea-south-fork-and-salt

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SWIMT5 

Smoke Outlook: https://outlooks.wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlook/430b2c05

Lincoln County Government: www.lincolncountynm.gov

Mescalero Apache Tribe: https://mescaleroapachetribe.com 

Village of Ruidoso: www.ruidoso-nm.gov/south-fork-fire

6/25/24 - Morning Update - Firefighters will be continuing the work on the Park Ridge prescribed fire today. Despite precipitation yesterday, they continue to have great progress in their actions.

Smoke may be visible from the Generals Highway and Highway 180. Visitors should anticipate moderate smoke impacts in the Grant Grove and potentially Hume Lake on ignition days, along with intermittent traffic delays. At night, smoke may also be noticeable in lower elevations of the parks and the Hume Lake Ranger District of Sequoia National Forest and surrounding foothill areas. 

The Park Ridge Prescribed Burn covers 560 acres along the main ridge east of Grant Grove and the Kings Canyon Visitor Center, divided into four segments on the western slope of the ridge. Specific details can be found in the Maps tab.

 For air quality updates tailored to your location or for trip planning, please visit fire.airnow.gov. This website is accessible via smartphone for convenience.

 Access to the General Grant Tree and its parking area will remain unaffected by the prescribed burn. However, trails leading to Park Ridge and Panoramic Point will be closed during this period.
 

2024 Park Ridge Prescribed Fire - June 24, 2024

Mon, 06/24/2024 - 21:05

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2024 Park Ridge Prescribed Fire - June 24, 2024

Crews are seeing good consumption of dead and down fuels on the Park Ridge prescribed fire.

6/24/23 – Evening Update - The Park Ridge prescribed burn is aimed at reducing the risk of future unwanted fires by consuming excess fuel in a targeted area. 

Great progress was made today, with 10 acres successfully treated even with late afternoon participation. Smoke may be visible overnight as firefighters continue to monitor the burn. 

The visibility of smoke will persist throughout the evening as firefighters remain vigilant in monitoring the fire overnight. Ignition efforts will resume tomorrow, June 25.

Below is a video of fuels being consumed:

Today, firefighters were successful in using fire to clean up an unburned area of the fire on the north end. Burning started mid-morning and firefighters completed ignitions around noon. Smoke was visible during the day, and currently is minimal. AirNow is reporting good air quality in Twin Lakes. The Interlaken Fire is now 100% contained at 704 acres and 84 fire personnel. Tomorrow morning the Type 3 Incident Management Team will transition to a Type 4 organization.

For public safety, the Forest Service closure remains in effect for the burned area and surrounding recreation areas.  

Interlaken Fire INFORMATION

USFS Leadville Ranger District:  719-486-0749                      

Email: 2024.interlaken@firenet.gov

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560818226034  (“Interlaken Fire Information”)

InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/copsf-interlaken-fire

Road Closures visit this link.

https://www.okanogancounty.org/government/emergency_management/active_incidents.php