Magdalena Fire Dept. Contains Small Wildfire

By John Larson

MAGDALENA – A quick response by the Magdalena Fire Dept., along with the Hop Canyon Fire Dept. prevented a small wildland fire from spreading Friday afternoon. The fire was contained along a 40 foot stretch on the east side of Highway 169, about one and a half miles north of Magdalena.
Magdalena Fire Chief Arthur Rauschenberg said the fire was possibly started by a tossed cigarette. He said the call came it at 12:20 p.m. by a passerby.
“Someone driving by had a shovel and tried to help contain it,” Rauschenberg said. “There also was a woman who had a case of bottled water, and she stopped and was pouring water on it.”
The Magdalena Fire Department responded with a brush truck and pumper, and Hop Canyon volunteers arrived with one pumper.
Village Deputy Marshal Ed Sweeney and two U.S. Forest Service personnel were assisting, Rauschenberg said.
“This could have really spread quickly, with the winds so high,” he said. “It could have been acres and acres, but it was out by one o’clock, and had burned less than one acre. I think we were extremely fortunate.”
Rauschenberg said residents should start becoming aware of the danger of fires getting out of control during windy and dry conditions.
“Be extra careful when burning trash at your house and burning off fields,” he said.
High winds and dry grass fueled several wildfires across the state.
Last Friday, Mar. 26, firefighters battled four other wildland fires: the Brewer Fire in Capitan; the Buckhorn Fire near Hondo; the March Wind Fire near Buckeye between Hobbs and Lovington; and an unnamed fire in Chaves County 20 miles north of Roswell.
Also on Friday, Socorro County Deputy Fire Marshal Jerry Wheeler and firefighters from Abeytas Fire Department put out a small fire in La Joya.
Coincidently, Governor Bill Richardson has proclaimed this week as Wildfire Awareness Week.
According to the Governor’s press release, in the first three months of 2010 New Mexico has had more than 60 wildfires that burned approximately 11,000 acres, a significant decrease from last year at this time when there were 264 fires that burned 63,589 acres.
“Wildfire can occur in New Mexico at any time during the year, depending on conditions,” Deputy State Forester Tony Delfin said in the release. “We must think smart and not let wildfires start.”
Fire officials also expect the potential for fires along the Rio Grande Valley to increase in Bosque areas as the drier spring and summer months progress.
Wheeler said the potential for wildfires could be higher in the next few days.
“We’re keeping track of what the weather bureau is telling us, and right now we are in a critical period,” Wheeler said. “With winds predicted to continue through Easter weekend and humidity around 15 percent, we’d like to remind people to be extra careful.”

Magdalena Fire Dept. Contains Small Wildfire