Hickman Fire near Aztec quickly contained amid active fire season
The Hickman Fire ignited 5 miles northwest of Aztec and was quickly contained, with no evacuations or major damage reported.
A new wildfire 5 miles northwest of Aztec started on July 3 and was quickly contained, with no evacuations and no major damage. The fire burned in the same corridor where smoke and flames can move fast toward homes, rural roads and access routes if wind picks up.
The National Wildfire Coordinating Group defines containment as the point when crews have completed a control line around the fire, including any spot fires, that can reasonably be expected to stop the fire’s spread. In practice, that means the worst of the immediate growth may be checked, but firefighters still have to watch for heat, wind shifts and flare-ups along the perimeter.
The Hickman Fire landed in a state already deep into fire season. New Mexico fire restrictions on non-federal, non-Tribal and non-municipal lands were in effect as of April 6, and the state’s fire-restrictions dashboard tracks current limits and incidents. Nationally, 274 new fires had been reported since the previous day and 35 large fires were burning across the country on July 6, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
Hot, dry and windy conditions were exacerbating wildfire spread across Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico in early July, according to NASA Earthdata, and New Mexico officials have repeatedly warned that drought and fire danger remain elevated statewide. San Juan County Fire & Rescue is headquartered at 209 South Oliver in Aztec.
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