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The largest wildfire in New Mexico is the most destructive in the U.S.

The Calf Canyon fire near More, New Mexico is now the largest wildfire in the U.S. – covering 97,064 acres.

Published

April 30, 2022

Overgrown forests, a warming climate and a growing number of homes in the wildland-urban interface have contributed to a wildfire and forest health crisis. Source - U.S. Forest Service

Overgrown forests, a warming climate and a growing number of homes in the wildland-urban interface have contributed to a wildfire and forest health crisis. Source - U.S. Forest Service

Firefighters in New Mexico failed on Friday to pin back the flames of the United States’ largest wildfire, which is burning perilously close to a string of mountain villages.

The Calf Canyon and Hermits Peak Fires, located near Gallinas Canyon in New Mexico are rapidly spreading east toward Las Vegas, Nevada. The wind-driven run exceeded predicted rates of spread, causing many changes in evacuation and road closure status.

The blaze is the most destructive of dozens in the U.S. Southwest that are more widespread and burning earlier than normal in the year due to climate change, scientists say, according to Reuters.

As of April 30, the blaze has burned 75, 280 acres, and is 32 percent contained, according to the Southwest Area Incident Management Team.

Thousands of people in the Mora Valley, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) northeast of Santa Fe, prepared to evacuate as smoke billowed from the forest around the nearby farming community of Ledoux.

More than 160,000 acres across New Mexico have already burned in recent weeks, and the National Weather Service warned on Friday of an “extremely critical fire weather area” over northeast New Mexico, southeast Colorado, and southwest Kansas.

It also described a “critical fire weather” area over the southern High Plains, which includes Texas and Oklahoma.

The rapid rate of the spread of the fire was exceeding dire predictions in some areas, incident commander Carl Schwope said Friday night, according to The Associated Press.

“We’re in a very dangerous situation. Evacuation statuses are changing as we speak,” he warned at a briefing in Las Vegas, New Mexico, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Santa Fe.

There were no immediate reports of any new structures having been lost since the local sheriff confirmed Thursday night that at least 166 homes have been destroyed in northeast New Mexico’s rural San Miguel County.

But erratic wind shifts in some of the driest conditions the region has seen in years were forecast again Saturday, and authorities were making preparations to evacuate some residents as far north as Taos.

More than 2,000 firefighters were battling fires in Arizona and New Mexico on Friday – about half of those in northeast New Mexico, where a total of more than 187 square miles (484 square kilometers) of mostly timber and brush have been charred.

In this article:Calf Canyon, Hermits Peak fire, largest in US, new mexico, wildfires

Written By Karen Graham

We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our dear friend Karen Graham, who served as Editor-at-Large at Digital Journal. She was 78 years old. Karen's view of what is happening in our world was colored by her love of history and how the past influences events taking place today. Her belief in humankind's part in the care of the planet and our environment has led her to focus on the need for action in dealing with climate change. It was said by Geoffrey C. Ward, "Journalism is merely history's first draft." Everyone who writes about what is happening today is indeed, writing a small part of our history.