Massive New Mexico Blaze Blamed on Miscalculations, Errors

Carson Hot Shots Tyler Freeman works to keep a burning log from rolling down a slope, as he and his co-workers work on hot spots from the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire in the Carson National Forest west of Chacon, N.M., on May 23, 2022. Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.—U.S. Forest Service employees made multiple miscalculations, used inaccurate models, and underestimated how dry conditions were in the Southwest, causing a planned burn to reduce the threat of wildfires to explode into the largest blaze in New Mexico’s recorded history, the agency said Tuesday.

The agency quietly posted an 80-page review that details the planning missteps and the conditions on the ground as crews ignited the prescribed fire in early April. The report states officials who planned the operation underestimated the amount of timber and vegetation that was available to fuel the flames, the exceptional dry conditions and the rural villages and water supplies that would be threatened if things went awry.