On April 6, 2022, personnel with the Santa Fe National Forest conducted a controlled burn project, called the Las Dispensas prescribed burn, in the Pecos/Las Vegas Ranger District of the National Forest. Controlled or prescribed burns date back to indigenous land practices in the United States and are commonly conducted; they play a beneficial role in helping thin out fuels to prevent more severe wildfires, as well as in balancing ecosystems that depend on the introduction of fire.[5][6][7][8] However, erratic winds in the afternoon of April 6 caused spot fires to ignite outside the project boundary, and the prescribed burn was declared a wildfire.[9] It was officially named the Hermits Peak Fire, after a nearby mountain of the Sangre de Cristo range called Hermit Peak. Crews worked to contain the incident, and by April 19, the Hermits Peak Fire had burned 7,573 acres and was 91% contained.[10] On April 19, a new fire ignited several miles to the west of the Hermits Peak Fire, also within the Santa Fe National Forest. It was officially named the Calf Canyon Fire, after the nearby Calf Canyon Road. The cause of the fire is currently unknown, and as of May 4 the U.S. Forest Service could not provide an estimate for when a cause might be determined.[11] The fire grew to 123 acres by April 21st, and that evening made a run to the north, growing significantly.[12]
On the morning of Friday, April 22, the Hermits Peak Fire was 7,573 acres and 91% contained.[13] The Calf Canyon Fire was approximately 3,000 acres and 0% contained. That same day, the region entered sustained critical fire weather conditions. A red flag warning was issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) extending from 9:00 AM to midnight local time, including winds from 60-74 miles per hour and temperatures in the upper 70s. The two fires grew rapidly to the northeast, exhibiting extreme fire behavior such as crowning and long-range spotting. Many structures were lost. The two fires merged as the winds fanned them, combining into a single fire footprint of approximately 42,341 acres by April 23.[14] The two fires have been managed together since then, with a single acreage and containment number reported for the incident.
Severe fire weather conditions continued over the following weeks. Between April 29 and May 4, the fire grew over 10,000 acres a day, fueled by more red flag warning conditions. On May 3, the now-combined Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire became the second largest wildfire in recorded New Mexico state history. Several days later, an 'unprecedented' period of severe fire weather began on May 7 and continued for nearly a week, fueling rapid growth of the fire, particularly on the northern flank. The fire often produced pyrocumulus and occasionally pyrocumulonimbus clouds, reaching tens of thousands of feet into the air.[4] The smoke columns were highly visible for long distances, including in Santa Fe, Taos, Moriarty, and Albuquerque, New Mexico.
On May 16, due to the size and complexity of the incident, management of the suppression effort was reorganized. The fire was split into a north zone and a south zone: a Type 1 incident management team (IMT) managed the north zone, and a Type 3 IMT managed the south zone.[15][16]
As of 16 May 2022, the blaze is almost 300,000 acres and 27% contained.
Go choke on a dildo you stupid fuck.
