As of 11:15 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 24, the Navajo River Fire, burning on Jicarilla Apache Nation lands in northern New Mexico, had burned 1,430 acres and was near the Colorado-New Mexico state line.
According to Thad McKain, Archuleta County's director of emergency management, the fire, which started from lightning, was 40-percent contained at the time, with crews reportedly hoping to increase to 50-percent containment by the end of the day.
McKain reported that the fire is near Seguro Canyon in Archuleta County, just south of Archuleta Mesa.
The fire was upgraded to a Type 3 incident on Sunday, McKain reported, with many ground resources actively working the fire and more on the way. The fire behavior is reported as moderate today.
In addition to keeping an eye on the status of the Navajo River Fire, McKain reported that local resources are on the lookout for new fire starts, and a state-owned multi-mission aircraft is flying over Archuleta County today to help detect any new fire starts. The aircraft, McKain explained, flies at 30,000 feet and can detect fires as small as 12 inches by 12 inches.
