Little Bear Fire June 21, 2012 – 9 a.m.
Public Concerned about Flare Ups as Fire Winds Down
Start Time/Date: Monday, June 4, 2012
Location: Smokey Bear Ranger District, Lincoln NF, including White Mountain
Wilderness
Cause: Lightning
Fuels: Mixed conifer, ponderosa pine
Size: approx. 42,995 acres
Containment: 60 %
Resources Committed:Personnel: 894; crews: 8 Type 1, 10 Type 2; engines:
57; helicopters: 4 Type 1, 2 Type 2, 2 Type 3; dozers: 4; water tenders: 14
Today’s weather: 72-84 degrees, relative humidity 30-35%, wind S 18-22 mph
gusting to 35 mph
Total Injuries to Date: 5
Structures destroyed: 254 (242 residential & commercial structures and 12
outbuildings)
Road Closures: NM 532 (Ski Run Road) west from the softball complex near NM
48 junction, and Forest Road 107 are open to residents only
Area Closures: The entire White Mountain Wilderness, and that portion of
the Smokey Bear Ranger District south of US 380 to the Mescalero Apache
Reservation boundary, including a large area east and north of Ruidoso to
the south boundary of the Fort Stanton Recreation Area.
Numerous telephone calls were received yesterday from local residents and
visitors who were reporting active fire and smoke. We appreciate the
public’s vigilance, but want to point out that this is still an active
fire, and interior fuels will continue to flare up. We can expect to see
flare ups of interior fuels for weeks to come, until wetting rains
extinguish all burning fuels. The perimeter of the fire is fully staffed
and firefighters are ready to extinguish any blazes detected by aerial
monitoring which threaten to escape containment.
Summary: Crews continue to hold and improve the edge of the black line on
the northwest side today, while helicopters ignite additional backing fires
where necessary. Fire will be less active today due to increased humidity
and cloud cover. There is a 30% chance of thunderstorms with locally heavy
rain and lightning this afternoon. Burnout of fuel around the Runnels
Stables subdivision is nearly complete. Activity on the remainder of the
fire will consist of patrol and mop up, and rehabilitation of containment
lines in all divisions. Release of excess resources continues, making these
resources available for other assignments.
All subdivisions are now open. Angus, Bonita Park, Ski Run Road, and
Bonita Lake are open to residents only. Residents returning to their homes
should be alert for fire vehicle traffic and damaged roads.
The Village of Ruidoso wants everyone to know that, despite the fire
activity, it is open for business. See the following websites:
http://www.discoverruidoso.
http://www.ruidosonow.com/
Evacuations: All campgrounds west of Bonito Lake
Shelters: Pets and livestock may be taken to Pet Paradise in La Luz
(575-434-1784), Otero County fairgrounds in Alamogordo (575-434-0788,
575-491-7553, or 575-491-4643), Lincoln County fairgrounds in Capitan
(575-808-2814), Humane Society of Lincoln County in Ruidoso (575-257-9841
or 575-378-1039), Ruidoso Animal Clinic (575-257-4027), Dunagan Farms in
Ruidoso (575-257-9549 or 575-621-4056), New Mexico Livestock Board
(575-649-2758), Carrizozo Animal Shelter (575-648-2351), Thundering Paws in
Alto (575-336-7297), and Yolanda and Robert Espinoza (575-354-9019).
Many residents of the community have expressed interest in making monetary
donations to the firefighting organizations. Local fire departments should
be considered first. Additionally, the following websites provide avenues
for making donations: www.wffoundation.org, and www.redcrossnewmexico.org.
Information on wildland fire smoke and your health can be found on the New
Mexico Department of Health's website at:
https://nmtracking.unm.edu/eh_
health line at (877)304-4161. Additional websites for accurate fire
information are Facebook.com/LittleBearFireNM, Twitter.com/T1SWIMT,
Flickr.com.photos.
Flickr.com/photos/wildland-
As the monsoons approach, heavy rainfall may produce flash floods. The
National Weather Service Advisories are available at:
http://www.weather.gov/abq.
A predictive model for probability of thunderstorms over burned areas,
known as Burn Scar Thunderstorm Threat Matrix, is available at:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/
for Lincoln County CodeRED Emergency Alerts at
http://www.lincolncountynm.
The fire information call center in Ruidoso closed last night. The phone
number on the top of this update will continue to direct calls to a staffed
telephone for anyone needing information.
(See attached file: Little Bear Fire news release 6_21 am.pdf)
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Little Bear Fire Information
Inciweb.org/incident/2903/
NMFireInfo.com
Facebook.com/LittleBearFireNM
Twitter.com/T1SWIMT
Flickr.com.photos.
Flickr.com/photos/wildland-
Little Bear Fire Info Call Center – 575-258-6900 (7am -7 pm)
Media Duty Officer - 505-235-4213 (7am - 10pm)
Health Related Questions About Smoke – 1-877-304-4161 (24 hr / 7 days a
week)
Mental Health Support for Wildfire Victims – 866-342-6892 (24 hr / 7 days a
week)