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Extreme drought fueled wildfires in New Mexico during June 2013. With fires already burning in northern New Mexico, another intense fire emerged in the southern part of the state in Gila National Forest on June 7, 2013.
Lightning ignited the Silver Fire in a rugged, forested area east of of Silver City, New Mexico. On June 10, 2013, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this image of the fire. Red outlines indicate hot spots where MODIS detected unusually warm surface temperatures that are associated with fires.
According to firefighting agencies in New Mexico, the Silver Fire had spread across nearly 6,700 acres (2,700 hectares) by by the morning of June 11. The fires were being fought by 350 firefighters on the ground and by helicopters.
An assessment of wildfire vulnerability issued by the National Interagency Fire Center in early June pointed out that much of the New Mexico had received less than half the normal amount of rain in May. About 82 percent of the state was in either extreme or exceptional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. New Mexico will be at a high risk of wildfire throughout the hot and dry month of June, but wetter conditions should arrive in July when weather patterns shift and the North American monsoon brings more rain to the state.
Further Reading
- Las Cruces Sun-News (2013, June 10) Kingston evacuated as crews battle Silver Fire. Accessed June 11, 2013.
- Silver City Sun-News (2013, June 10) Fire in Black Range closes Highway 152, forces evacuation of Kingston. Accessed June 11, 2013.
NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Adam Voiland.
SILVER CITY, NM – June 11, 2022— Firefighters and aircraft are currently working to suppress the Skates Fire on the Gila National Forest about 13 miles northeast of Silver City. It is estimated under 100 acres and spreading to the east. The Signal Peak Lookout reported the fire on Friday at 4:11 p.m. The incident is being managed by a Type 3 organization with Incident Commander Rocky Ahshapanek.
Resources assigned to the incident include several engines, a 20-person handcrew, three hotshot crews, eight smokejumpers, two bulldozers, and two helicopters totaling about 140 personnel. Additional resources are ordered. The fire is burning in steep, rugged terrain causing firefighters to hike one mile to reach the fire.
There are no evacuations associated with the Skates Fire. Residents and visitors are cautioned to avoid the area so that the firefighters can safely perform their job.
Residents and visitors with questions can call 530-640-1168.
Gila National Forest website, Facebook.
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Updated at 4:18 p.m. MDT May 16, 2022 The Black Fire 31 miles north-northeast of Silver City, New Mexico is very active Monday afternoon, as seen in these photos. 10:22 a.m. MDT May 16, 2022
The Black Fire 31 miles north-northeast of Silver City, New Mexico made an impressive run to the east Sunday. Fire officials said that morning it was 1,174 acres; when it was mapped by an aircraft that night at 9:04 it had grown to 18,762 acres and was 11 miles long. Satellite data at 3:26 Monday morning indicated that it had continued to spread vigorously to the east through the night.
It is burning in timber and tall grass in the Gila National Forest 34 miles west of Interstate 25 and Truth or Consequences.
The rapid growth of the fire Sunday was due to dry fuels, relative humidity that dropped to 2 percent, and 10 mph winds gusting to 22 out of the west-southwest. The data was recorded at the Gila Center weather station.
The weather forecast for Monday near the fire at 6,800 feet calls for 18 mph winds gusting out of the southwest at 28 mph, 86 degrees, and 4 percent relative humidity — conditions that could lead to additional spread to the northeast.