Fueled by fierce spring winds in parched mountain forests, the Calf Canyon Fire is by far the largest and most destructive currently burning in the United States.
about 30 miles (48 km) east of Santa Fe, the fire destroyed hundreds of properties, triggered thousands of evacuations and on Saturday scorched a few miles from the city of Las Vegas, New Mexico, which has 14,000 inhabitants.
“It’s already 100,000 acres. It could easily double in size, maybe even more,” Operations Commander Carl Schwope told a briefing.
The blaze grew by around 50% in 24 hours when a giant column of flames collapsed Friday night Saturday, raining down embers and sparking new fires. Residents of Las Vegas woke up to charred pieces of wood the size of a US 25 cent coin covering the city.
Officials feared another “column collapse” at any time.
“It’s a big fire and it’s all around us,” San Miguel County Executive Joy Ansley said by phone, adding that officials were making plans in case Las Vegas was asked to evacuate.
Firefighters believe the American West is facing a dire year for wildfires, with data from the US Department of Agriculture showing that 80% of the region is in severe drought.
Under the scenario of a two-degree Celsius rise in global temperatures, scientists expect wildfires in the American West to burn twice as much area as they do today by mid-century.
More than a third of the 2,800 firefighters currently deployed across the United States were on the Calf Canyon blaze, bulldozing firebreaks to defend Las Vegas and battling “spot fires” sparked by embers and approaching the villages of the Mora valley.
Since the start of the year, forest fires in the United States have burned twice as much area as during the same period in 2021 and about 70% more than the 10-year average, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.