近距离内射合集

A towering smoke plume visible for miles around north-central New Mexico on Sunday dispersed across the region again on Monday, enveloping communities in the charred haze of what is now the third-largest wildfire in the state this year.

Westerly winds on Sunday pushed flames from the Frijoles Fire deeper into the steep terrain of the Pecos Wilderness in Santa Fe National Forest, where nearly 660 personnel from multiple agencies across New Mexico and the U.S. are fighting to contain the now 11,335-acre blaze.

The most recent surge set back overall fire containment, which moved from 12% over the weekend to 9% on Monday after firefighters carved a barrier on the Frijoles鈥� southwestern flank Friday night.

Hotshot crews today are continuing to build direct containment line toward Ca帽on Navajo, down the western flank toward Rio Frijoles to protect at-risk communities.

In a Sunday update, Planning Operations Trainee Forrest Gale said crews were also working to implement contingency lines north of the Frijoles Fire along Forest Road 306 and were moving more personnel east into the Pecos Wilderness, where the fire continued to burn on Monday.

Yesterday, crews also completed building contingency lines 鈥� backup barriers established ahead of the fire鈥檚 main fronts 鈥� to protect Gorham Boy Scout Ranch and the small village of Cundiy贸, a portion of which was evacuated one week ago as the fire continued to grow amid extremely dry conditions this month.

The Forest Service issued a temporary closure of the Pecos Wilderness in the Espa帽ola Ranger District on Sunday, but  An evacuation shelter is available at the Pojoaque Valley Middle School gym.

Monday鈥檚 forecast called for scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon and a reduced likelihood of precipitation, according to the National Weather Service in Albuquerque. Temperatures will be in the mid 70s with minimum relative humidity dropping to around 20%.

Winds are expected to shift to the southeast, with gusts up to 10 mph possibly driving wildfire smoke back into the Santa Fe area.

Heavy smoke from the fire enveloped nearby communities and even the town of Taos early on Monday, obscuring the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to a faint outline at points throughout the day.

The New Mexico Department of Health issued an air quality advisory for when wildfire smoke is present last week, and the intermittent haze has led to event cancellations and precautions by both Santa Fe and Taos public schools districts.

The fire鈥檚 origin due to a lightning strike in the Pecos Wilderness鈥� precipitous and varied topography on Aug. 4 challenged early access to the fire. Air tankers and helicopters formed the basis of the initial wildfire crew鈥檚 preliminary attempts to control the blaze before hundreds of additional personnel were called in over the past week.

Fire managers will hold a second community meeting to discuss firefighting strategies and public advisories at 6 p.m. today at the Santa Fe Convention Center, 201 West Marcy Street.

While still less than half the size of the 31,870-acre Seven Cabins Fire and the 30,144-acre Line Fire this spring, the late-season Frijoles Fire is now the third-largest wildfire in New Mexico this year.

John Miller is the Journal鈥檚 northern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at jmiller@abqjournal.com.