Nacimiento Wildfire Reaches 100% Containment After Burning 18 Acres

The Nacimiento Wildfire, the first wildfire of the spring season in the Santa Fe National Forest, was declared 100% contained after burning 18 acres in the Cuba Ranger District south of the Nacimiento Mine and New Mexico State Road 126 in Sandoval County.

The fire was discovered Sunday morning, March 22, and had grown to about 17 acres by that afternoon amid high winds and low relative humidity as a historic heatwave gripped the state. Claudia Brookshire, public affairs specialist for the Santa Fe National Forest, said about 60 fire personnel were deployed to fight the blaze, including two air tankers, three fire engines — two from the Forest Service and one from Bernalillo County — as well as the Mimbres Hand Crew and Smokey Bear Hotshots from the Lincoln National Forest.

"We did have large air tankers drop retardant on the fire on Sunday," Brookshire said in a phone interview Monday afternoon. "That stopped forward progress. They do have containment lines around the fire, and weather is favorable today, which should aid in further strengthening of those containment lines."

Wildland firefighting crews from throughout New Mexico brought the blaze to about 80% containment by Monday afternoon. Handlines, along with Forest Service Roads 533L and 533LD, served as key containment features, and all containment lines held over the last two nights, with resources remaining on scene to conduct mop-up operations.

Crews extinguished or removed burning material along the east and west flanks near the containment lines, while firefighters reinforced roads and constructed handline along the northern perimeter, tying those sections into existing Forest Service roads to further strengthen containment.

The fire burned in oak, ponderosa pine, pinyon-juniper, and Douglas fir across the Cuba Ranger District terrain. Smoke remained visible from Cuba and surrounding communities, as well as along NM State Road 126, even after containment was achieved.

The fire is believed to be human-caused, according to a Forest Service spokesperson, though the Santa Fe National Forest's official final update listed the cause as under investigation. The Forest Service asked the public to stay away from the area while mop-up continues and warned that drones near firefighting aircraft pose a serious safety hazard to aerial operations.

The Nacimiento Wildfire was the first confirmed wildfire response of the 2026 spring season for the Santa Fe National Forest, arriving against a backdrop of statewide drought conditions. The National Weather Service recorded 29 wildfires across New Mexico last year, with 186,544 total acres burned.