Carson National Forest closes
Carson National Forest managers implemented Stage 3 fire restrictions to close the entire Forest to public entry beginning Thursday (May 19) at 8 a.m. Fire danger remains extreme, with record conditions only expected to worsen over the foreseeable future, according to a press release from the Forest Service issued on Tuesday (May 17).
“The hot and dry conditions we’re experiencing pose a dire risk for wildfires to quickly ignite and spread rapidly,” said Carson National Forest Supervisor James Duran. “Community compliance will be essential for our success in protecting the forest amid these conditions.”
Businesses and communities surrounded by the Carson National Forest will remain open, but campgrounds, trails and National Forest
System roads will close. Stage 2 fire restrictions will remain in effect for any entities given permission to enter the forest (e.g. utilities performing critical infrastructure work), according to the release.
The Camino Real Ranger District closed last week after the Hermits Peak–Calf Canyon Fires crossed over the Forest boundary from the Santa Fe National Forest, which will also close Thursday (a portion of Cibola National Forest will close the same day, too).
The last time the Forest closed was in late June 2018, when conditions were similar. Extreme conditions occurred earlier this year, however, and are already more severe than most on record.
The Calf Canyon–Hermits Peak Fire became the largest in state history this week, surpassing the 297,000-acre Whitewater–Baldy Fire in 2012.