VallesCaldera.com – The independent news source about the Valles Caldera

The Las Conchas Fire has now burned 149,240 acres (233 square miles) of the Jemez Mountains, with 57% containment, according to this morning’s fire report. According to incident managers, “most parts of the fire are considered contained and are in patrol status.”

Despite this positive pronouncement, Jemez residents are closely tracking the most active remaining front of the fire, along the inferno’s southwest perimeter. From InciWeb:

On the southwest edge, the fire has been backing down the slope from Peralta Ridge toward Forest Road (FR) 266. The strong, erratic winds from the forecasted thunderstorm could push the fire over FR 266. The current warming and drying trend is making the fire burn hotter, consuming more of the trees and shrubs. Working mostly at night and when the winds are calm, firefighters are gradually burning out this area, creating a low-intensity ground fire. The burnout will secure this portion of the line while minimizing impacts on the area.

Bandelier National Monument just announced that it will open the following sections of the Monument tomorrow: the Tsankawi Section, Juniper Campground and Amphitheater, Overlook Trail, and Burnt Mesa Trail.

Since burned ground becomes hydrophobic — or repels water like concrete — land managers across Northern New Mexico have continued to prepare for flooding that is expected to follow the monsoons that typically soak the region with afternoon thunderstorms (though there has been only one day of unchecked rain since the fire began, last Monday, July 11). The photo below depicts the Bandelier National Monument Visitor Center surrounded by sandbags to protect the beloved, CCC-built historic structure from a swollen Frijoles Creek:

On its Facebook page, rangers from Bandelier stated that the multitude of sandbags stacked at its Visitor Center are causing the building to look “like a fortress.”

Data from fires over the past several decades are guiding management decisions at Bandelier in order to best mitigate impending flood damage:

Following the La Mesa Fire of 1977 [Frijoles] creek flowed thirty-two times its usual rate, and destroyed 23 trail bridges, altered the stream bed, forced evacuations, and deposited 3 feet of silt behind the administrative buildings.

Looking back to June 26, the day the fire began, the owner of a private ranch at Las Conchas, Roger Cox, revealed that the fire began on his land when his caretaker was in Los Alamos running errands. The Associated Press ran an article Wednesday covering this news with the headline “Largest fire in NM history might have been averted.” Cox seemed to finger his caretaker by stating that “if there had been someone to attend to it when the power line got hit, there would have been no fire. It would have been a small burn, but there wouldn’t be a big fire.”

However, the web site Wildfire Today scoffed at the notion that this fire could have been immediately prevented, noting the weather conditions near Las Conchas when the fire started — the day’s relative humidity was 6%, the temperature was 90 degrees, and the wind was out of the west at 19 mph, with gusts of up to 41 mph.

Given the weather on June 26, Wildfire Today stated:

Under those weather conditions it is doubtful that a ranch caretaker could have detected, gathered fire suppression equipment, traveled to, and then put out a fire being pushed by 19 to 40 mph winds adjacent to an arcing powerline.

Meanwhile, the Valle Grande Staging Area on the Valles Caldera National Preserve has reopened to the public. The drive down to the middle of the Valle Grande at the base of volcanic ring fracture dome Cerro la Jara from near mile marker 39 on Highway 4 will cost members of the public nothing. However, no additional recreation activities will be offered to visitors to the staging area at this time, with the exception of visitors being able to get out of their car and take a look at fire damage across the six-mile-long volcanic valley.

Finally, management of the fire is being streamlined and consolidated. Once under the direction of three type-1 incident command teams, management of the Las Conchas Fire has been reduced to one command team.

Here is the most recent fire map of the Las Conchas conflagration:

Confronting significant danger to its cherished historic and prehistoric structures in Frijoles Canyon, Bandelier National Monument has destroyed its footbridges across Frijoles Creek north of the park’s Visitor Center, as well as its automobile bridge next to the Visitor Center, to reduce the chances of severe flash flood damage [the photo above, by National Parks Traveler, depicts a footbridge over Frijoles Creek]. However, none of the removed bridges were part of Bandelier’s Civilian Conservation Corps Historic District, as they were all built after the CCC era.

As is the situation with the rest of the Jemez Mountains region, Bandelier faces significant danger of severe post-fire flash flooding, with the most recent InciWeb report revealing that the burn area of the Las Conchas Fire affected 95% of the Monument. The most heavily visited area of the Monument, the lower part of Frijoles Canyon (including the area of the Visitor Center, the Main Loop Trail, and the Alcove House/Ceremonial Cave) is in particular danger of flash flooding, given that the canyon experienced severe fire damage upstream from this area.

Particularly after a severe fire, flash floods often carry a large amount of logs and other material, Rick Jones, a spokesman for the National Park Service Intermountain All-Risk Management Team, told VallesCaldera.com. Jones stated that the bridges could form dams that trap this material.

When this material all releases, it could pose severe hazards for structures or living things downstream, according to Jones. Additionally, “we’re concerned about the bridges becoming projectiles that could damage the Visitor Center area,” Jones said.

The footbridges were made of concrete, he said, and the material in those bridges will not be reused. However, the automobile bridge by the Visitor Center was constructed using rock, and Jones stated that Park Service managers are “talking about preserving the rock and using it for other uses in the district.”

Jones said that the automobile bridge was constructed in 1949, well after the historic CCC period that developed the Visitor Center area of the Monument. As for the destroyed footbridges north of the Visitor Center, they were all constructed in the last several decades, and Jones stated that “they all have been removed at some point.”

Bandelier still faces a lengthy closure before visitors will be welcome back in Frijoles Canyon. “We are not going to have the canyon open for the foreseeable future,” Jones stated, reiterating that the threat of flash flood has increased dramatically since the fire. “It’s dangerous right now,” he added.

Here is some background on the cherished Bandelier CCC Historic District, from the National Park Service:

The Bandelier CCC Historic District contains 31 buildings all of pueblo revival design executed with a solid architectural unity that romantically mimicked a small New Mexican village. Designed by National Park Service architects and landscape architects and built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, this group of buildings provided a complete development for a national monument–from office space and residences for employees to lodging for guests.

Included within the Bandelier CCC Historic District are the thirty-one buildings, an entrance road, and minor structures such as stone water fountains and faucets in the former campground. Twenty-nine of the buildings are in Frijoles Canyon–a green canyon cut into the Pajarito Plateau containing thirteenth through sixteenth century cliff dwellings, other archeological features, and a permanent stream. Two of the buildings are on the mesa top along the entrance road that leads down into the canyon.

The buildings were designed as the administrative, residential, and maintenance core of Bandelier National Monument, and as a lodge for tourists who visited the monument. The lodge was necessary because other accommodations were in Santa Fe, reached in the 1930s by eighteen miles of poor dirt road and seventeen miles of partially paved highway.

The Las Conchas Fire’s rate of growth slowed yesterday to its smallest daily expansion since the fire began, having burned 1,289 acres over the past 24 hours. The fire is now 147,642 acres in size. The following photo, by Ethan Frogget, shows an air crane battling the fire in Los Alamos this morning:

Here is the most recent fire progression map, released today:

The indefatigable Staci Matlock wrote another informative piece today in the Santa Fe New Mexican, offering a look inside the management of the Las Conchas Fire.

With regard to the southwestern flank of the fire, about which managers issued an alert to Jemez residents on Saturday informing them about “increasing fire activity,” InciWeb reports today:

The fire continued backing along the south edge, but much less aggressively than in previous days. Firefighters cut control line just south of Peralta Ridge Trail from Peralta Ridge to Forest Road 266. The intent was to light from the road and develop a wider buffer should the fire start a run from below. The burnout was started, but was halted when humidity rose and winds shifted from the west to the south. Several spot fires started just north of the line. They received immediate attention and were extinguished.

The north zone of the fire, which until this weekend had been the most active region of the inferno, reported significant progress. Yesterday, according to fire managers, “all secondary and direct fireline construction was completed in all areas of the North Zone.”

The Las Conchas Fire grew another 4,103 acres yesterday to 146,353 acres in size. Fire growth primarily occurred in the southwest portion of the fire, a development to which fire managers alerted Jemez residents last night, stating that “increasing fire activity” would happen in that area. The progression map above illustrates this growth — yesterday’s fire growth occurred in the areas on the map that are reddest. Fire personnel battling the blaze have been reduced to 1,886, including 18 helicopters, 57 engines, 35 water tenders, and 8 dozers.

From this morning’s InciWeb report:

The SW zone was the most active with significant intense heat signatures and perimeter growth to the south.The remainder of the southern boundary was quiet with just a handful of isolated heat sources detected in the interior. The eastern boundary was also quiet with only isolated heat sources detected in the interior.The area NW of Los Alamos was much less intense last night with only scattered heat sources detected. The perimeter was relatively unchanged except for a small expansion in Garcia Canyon.

Meanwhile, weather forecasts for the Jemez Mountains show a 50%, 60% and 70% chance of precipitation for today, tomorrow, and Tuesday. Scattered thunderstorms are forecast for today, and heavy rain is on tap for the next two days. This should provide needed moisture for the area, but could also provoke flooding and erratic, strong winds that could challenge fire managers. To alert the area about this possibility, the National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning for the area surrounding the Jemez Mountains through Monday evening:

AN INCREASE IN MOISTURE FROM OLD MEXICO WILL RESULT IN AN
UPSWING IN THE AREAL COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OF THUNDERSTORMS
OVER PORTIONS OF WESTERN AND NORTHERN NEW MEXICO DURING THE
AFTERNOON AND EVENING TODAY AND MONDAY. RAINFALL RATES OF A HALF
INCH TO ONE INCH IN 30 MINUTES WILL BE POSSIBLE FROM THE
STRONGER STORMS. STORM COVERAGE AND INTENSITY WILL DECREASE
DURING THE LATE NIGHT AND MORNING TIME PERIODS.

Meanwhile, Staci Matlock of the Santa Fe New Mexican penned an excellent feature on the life of a wildland firefighter battling the Las Conchas Fire. The following excerpt of the article provides a snapshot into the quick and decisive work by firefighters that saved the well-known and much-revered portions of Bandelier National Monument within Frijoles Canyon, including the CCC-constructed visitor center area, the Main Loop Trail area, and the Alcove House:

The smoke plume from the Las Conchas Fire at one point twisted horizontally between the narrow walls of Frijoles Canyon, creating a dark, spinning vortex. At the park headquarters, more than two miles away, team members began laying out thousands of feet of hose, connecting sprinklers and filling large, portable orange-and-white containers, called pumpkins, with thousands of gallons of water. They wrapped fire-retardant cloth around the wooden vigas, windows, doors and other structure openings to prevent embers from flying inside and sparking a fire. While they worked, other park staff wrapped and quickly loaded valuable artifacts and artwork from the visitor center into their vehicles and drove them to safety in Santa Fe. Five Type 1 fire engines stood ready in case the blaze reached the buildings.

Three members of the team dug two fire break lines across the canyon about a mile from the buildings. While they were digging, another team member began burning small sections of the canyon bottom between the fire and their lines, hoping to slow down the barreling conflagration.

“We weren’t sure how successful the (outburn) would be until the second day,” Dutton said. Faced with a fast-moving fire, they had to do what they could and hope it worked.

Dutton was on the canyon rim monitoring the fire and the crew when the wind shifted suddenly. The fire jumped their first fire break line, but the second, less than a mile from Alcove House, held the fire back.

This afternoon, the Type 1 incident management team for the south zone of the Las Conchas Fire issued a “special announcement” for Jemez residents, alerting them of increasing fire activity along the southwestern portion of the perimeter of the Las Conchas Fire. The northern limit of the zone of increasing activity begins two miles south of the fire’s ignition point at Las Conchas, roughly at the north end of Peralta Ridge, at the communications towers, and stretches south along Peralta Ridge, turning to the east around Bearhead Peak. The zone of increasing activity begins about 3.5 miles southeast of Sierra los Piños, eight miles southeast of La Cueva, and roughly nine miles east of Jemez Springs. The map above indicates the limit to the north and south zones of increasing fire behavior. From the incident management team:

Over the past few days, we have been expecting rain to aid us in suppressing the southern edge of the Las Conchas fire.  While other parts of the fire have received rain, the South Zone has received very little.  Last night, we experienced lower than expected humidity recovery and very windy conditions in the Southern Zone.  As a result of these factors, fire activity is increasing.  This is especially obvious in the areas between Peralta Ridge and Colle Canyon.  To direct the fire movement and to keep the fire within the planned containment line established along Forest Road 266, fire managers are adjusting suppression tactics for this portion of the fire.
 
This afternoon, firefighters will begin burnout operations in two areas to limit the fire’s spread.  Burnouts will begin on the west side of the active area, along Peralta Ridge Trail and on the east side near La Jara Canyon.  Aerial ignition will continue as it has over the past few days between the burns as the fire slowly moves down slope toward the containment line established along Forest road 266. 
 
Burnout operations will continue into the night and night shifts are planned for the next few days to continue planned ignitions and monitor fire movement. During the day, aerial application of fire along ridge tops in the fire’s interior will assist with decreasing fire intensity as it spreads down slope.
 
During this time, residents will see a significant increase in smoke and possibly visible fire at night.  These actions are expected to keep the fire within the established containment line along Forest Road 266.
 
All other areas within the South Zone are stable and monitoring and mop-up will continue.

UPDATE: 2:10 PM –The following slideshow, from the northwest incident command team on the Las Conchas Fire, explains the various aircraft being used to battle the blaze, as well as some of the tactics that ground crews have been using to slow the fire’s growth:

The Las Conchas Fire has now grown to 142,250 acres, and fire managers report that it is still 40% contained, as it has been over the past few days. Here is the most recent progression map of the Las Conchas Fire (the more recent the expansion, the redder the shade on the map). As you can see, the only area of significant geographical expansion of the fire is in the fire’s southwest perimeter, near Peralta Canyon:

Despite the fact that the fire is continuing to expand, fire managers, land managers, the media, and elected officials have been heavily focused on the floods that inevitably arrive after large landscape fires, given that monsoonal activity is expected to increase by early next week.

KOB-TV reported that “shoveling sand in the high desert heat, scores of Santa Clara Pueblo residents of all ages spent the day filling sandbags to prepare for a flooding disaster.” Watch the report below:

Los Alamos County issued the following plea for volunteers to assist the pueblo with preparations for flooding (although this release is targeted at Los Alamos residents, clearly the Pueblo will gladly take help from anyone who has the strength and gumption to help them fill 30,000 sandbags):

Los Alamos County residents and employees are encouraged to assist our southern neighbors at Santa Clara Pueblo as they prepare for the summer monsoon season and a possible flooding disaster on the now dry Santa Clara Creek.

The Las Conchas fire burning above the pueblo on tens of thousands of acres of tribal forest has incinerated miles of vegetation around the Santa Clara headwaters leaving the area vulnerable to high runoff and erosion.

Volunteers are asked to help fill up to 30,000 sand bags provided by the Army Corps of Engineers. Tribal officials say they will use the sand bags to build walls around the main pueblo complex, as well as homes prone to flooding. The sand bagging effort is expected to continue through next week.

Sand bagging operations are taking place behind the Santa Clara Pueblo Senior Center, located next to the Santa Clara Pueblo Recreation Center on the east side of Highway 30. Volunteers are asked to report to the senior center to check in between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Volunteers are asked to wear long pants, long sleeves and closed toed shoes, and to bring a shovel. Please call ahead to check air quality conditions due to fire smoke at 505.692.6244.

Bandelier National Monument provided some useful information via Twitter regarding the Monument’s preparations for the monsoon season:

Anti-flood work around Visitor Center includes sandbags, debris & bridge removal, jersey barriers. Canyon area will be closed quite awhile.

Scientists consulting on potential for flashfloods in Frijoles Canyon say that fairly small amts of rain could cause massive floods.

Fire managers also released the following statement regarding the Burned Area Emergency Response team that is focused on preventing flood damage to the wildfire-ravaged Santa Clara Pueblo:

The Department of the Interior BAER Team was ordered and tasked by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to assess the damage to and potential threats to BIA trust lands caused by the Las Conchas Fire. The team’s first priority is Santa Clara Canyon. The team joins other BAER teams to make up the Las Conches BAER Team. The Las Conches BAER Team has divided the fire into the North Zone and South Zone. The task of the team is to collaborate and share resources to provide a unified approach to assessing fire effects.

The North Zone team has also been asked to do a cursory review of the assessments done on the Pacheco Fire. Sandbags and 250 concrete barriers, called k-rails, are being placed in strategic locations to protect homes and infrastructure from flooding on the Santa Clara Pueblo in anticipation of the coming monsoons. There is an early flood warning device in place. Tribal natural resources specialists are being consulted by Team experts to ensure that all affected pueblo’s needs are identified and addressed.

Watershed experts are making plans to mitigate possible damages. Additional hazard trees are being identified for removal and specific guidelines are being generated to guide sawyers towards which trees should be felled. Noxious weeds have also been identified in the watershed.

The BIA has assigned a 638 Contract Self Determination Specialist to work with the Tribe to speed contracting procedures for emergency stabilization projects.

As for the still-growing fire, this morning’s InciWeb report provides the following overview of the fight to battle it:

Several strategies are being utilized to contain the Las Conchas Fire. In many areas, firefighters have built line directly next to the fire. These lines are then mopped up by extinguishing all heat for about a hundred feet from the edge of the line. Another approach is building indirect line, away from the fire’s edge. Firefighters then burn along these lines to create a wider area free of fuels. It may take several hours or even days for the backing fire from the control line to meet up with the wildfire.

Another strategy is being employed on many parts of this fire. With expected “monsoonal” rains, the fire may be extinguished naturally. In places where the fire is burning in extremely steep and dangerous terrain, containment lines have been established along existing trails and roads. These lines have been prepared for burn-out, but fire managers are hoping the rains will arrive before the fire reaches those lines, making the burn-out of containment lines unnecessary. As the fire moves closer, the decision to burn along these lines is continually re-evaluated.

Therefore, the fire continues to grow, put up smoke, and develop columns as both interior runs and perimeter growth occurs.

With regard to the portion of the fire on Valles Caldera National Preserve land, according to InciWeb:

Containment lines along the west and northwest perimeter continue to keep the fire east of Cienega del Oso. Crews will patrol the Valles Caldera Preserve on the west and northwest edge for hot spots that might pose a threat. Construction of handline is complete in the Rito de los Indios drainage to limit fire growth along the northwest perimeter. Crews will continue preparing FR 144 to FR 27 for a burn-out along FR 27, should that become necessary.

Minimal rates of spread and fire activity are expected, due to increasing monsoonal activity to the east and across the fire area. There is a potential for re-burn in areas with heavy fuels, should high winds develop. Winds can cause fire-damaged trees and snags to blow down, which creates a hazard to firefighters.

And as for the active southwestern flank of the fire:

Crews will hold and secure both direct and indirect lines along Peralta Ridge and the line that connects Peralta Ridge to FR 266. They will scout to the south for other locations to construct line to assist in corralling the fire. Aerial ignition may be used today to back the fire towards containment lines.

Here is the most recent map of the Las Conchas Fire, which has grown to 139,592 acres in size (40% contained). 2,276 fire professionals are battling this blaze, including 52 crews:

According to the latest InciWeb report:

The Las Conchas Fire continues to burn in the Jemez Mountains. Most of the secure fire line is in the center and south end of the burn, protecting the communities of Vallecitos de los Indios, Sierra Los Pinos, La Cueva, Los Alamos, White Rock, Town of Cochiti, and Cochiti Pueblo.

Thunderstorms predicted for today pose two serious threats for firefighters. Lightning can endanger firefighters and may ignite new fires. The other major concern is the presence of outflow winds. These winds generated by the movement of air in the cloud column and come from all directions around the storm cell. They can cause the fire to spot across control lines, make intense wind-driven runs, and can cause erratic fire behavior.

New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez has declared a statewide state of emergency due to flood dangers that have been caused by the Southwest’s current season of extreme wildfire and intense drought. From the Governor’s office:

Santa Fe – Today, Governor Susana Martinez declared a State of Emergency in the State of New Mexico to allow for the effective placement of resources for emergency flood mitigation to augment existing flood mitigation efforts.

“After a long drought and fires, conditions exist that could lead to increased flooding throughout the state,” Governor Martinez said. “This Declaration allows the State to provide counties, cities, and pueblos with additional resources in preparation for flooding. This assistance will help higher risk areas such as those surrounding Cochiti Canyon, Ruidoso Downs, or the Santa Clara Pueblo, but it will also allow for higher statewide preparedness.”

Governor Martinez’s declaration allocates $750,000 to help pay for the movement and placement of materials around the state as well as the provision of technical assessment assistance where needed. These emergency mitigation measures will support efforts currently being taken by local emergency managers and floodplain coordinators. The New Mexico Department of Transportation along with the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (DHSEM) are coordinating a statewide effort to clean ditches, culverts, and debris in preparation of flood waters. At the request of Governor Martinez, a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) liaison is working with the DHSEM to assist and advise during mitigation planning and the immediate response.

Meanwhile, the Los Alamos Monitor reported that the Los Alamos airport as well as all airspace around the town have been closed to all but official uses, in order to facilitate effective and safe aerial operations to fight the Los Conchas blaze.

Additionally, Bandelier National Monument announced today that it has begun rehabilitation efforts to improve the damage caused to its land, half of which has been burned by the Las Conchas Fire:

Bandelier National Monument staff, with the assistance of the National Park Service Intermountain All Risk Management Team has begun the process of damage assessment and rehabilitation after the Las Conchas Fire burned over half of the Monument. They are also working to re-establish limited visitor services.

A Burned Area Emergency Response Team will be assessing post-fire threats to life, cultural/natural resources and property. They will determine effective measures to mitigate or minimize risks and implement emergency stabilization treatments. Due to an increasing chance of large rain storms and the loss of vegetation due to the fire, there is great concern about potential flooding in Frijoles canyon and other areas of the Monument.

A full assessment of the damage to the Monument’s cultural resources and wildlands is expected to take a long period of time. Some structures and developed areas have been damaged and may need to be repaired or removed.

Employees that live in Frijoles Canyon remain displaced from their homes and will have to stay in alternate accommodations until the safety of their homes in the Canyon can be assured.

Rangers warn that although the majority of the fires in the Monument have been suppressed, there are some areas in the backcountry that still have active areas of fire and the entire park remains closed to visitors. Some Monument land adjacent to Highway 4 in the burned areas may have stump holes that could trap hiker’s feet, causing serious burns and contain damaged trees that could fall without warning. Parking along Highway 4 is currently prohibited.

For those who would like to learn more about climate change and fire dynamics in Bandelier National Monument and the Jemez Mountains please visit www.nps.gov/band and tune in to PBS for the new movie Sky Island which premiers on PBS on Sunday July 10, 2011. Further information can be obtained from Park Rangers who will be providing information at the Smith’s Store in Los Alamos and you can also visit the Monument’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/BandelierNPS or subscribe to their Twitter feed at http://www.twitter.com/BandelierNPS.