Gila National Forest lifts Willow Creek evacuations, reopens Bursum Road
Willow Creek is back to READY status, and Bursum Road is open again between Mogollon and Willow Creek as the Sacaton Fire reached 57% containment.
Willow Creek evacuations were lifted and Bursum Road/NM-159 reopened between Mogollon and Willow Creek, restoring a key access corridor in the Sacaton Fire area. The fire reached 9,848 acres and 57% containment, with 140 personnel still assigned to the incident about 15 miles east of Glenwood, New Mexico.
Willow Creek had been in GO status on July 11 before returning to READY status, and the Gila Las Cruces Type 3 Incident Management Team recommended that step before the Catron County Sheriff changed the evacuation order and the New Mexico Department of Transportation opened the road.
Crews were still working through the fire’s footprint even as access improved. In Willow Creek, structure-protection equipment was being removed from the subdivision, a grader had started repairs on Bursum Road to reduce damage from suppression work, and dozer work was planned on the 119 Road. Crews were also continuing to chip and haul heavy fuels along containment lines, and a flight was scheduled to remove protective wrapping from the cabin on Mogollon Baldy.
The July 4 amended closure still covers National Forest System lands, roads and trails in the Gila Wilderness around Sacaton Mountain, including routes such as Mogollon Baldy Trail #152, Whitewater Trail #207.1, South Fork Whitewater Trail #212, East Fork Whitewater Trail #213 and Whitewater Baldy Trail #172. That leaves the wider backcountry network under restriction even as the main corridor through Willow Creek opens up again.
On July 12, about one-half inch of rain fell on the east side of the fire and around one-tenth of an inch fell on the west side. Showers and thunderstorms were expected to keep moving through the area. Containment rose from 43 percent on July 11 to 52 percent on July 12 and then to 57 percent on July 13.
Even with Bursum Road back open, the Gila remains under Stage 1 Fire Restrictions, which limit campfires on forest land to designated recreation sites and campgrounds with constructed metal fire rings. Open burning is also prohibited in the unincorporated area of Catron County and Catron County Fire District 30.
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