“I knew initially that something was very wrong. You just don’t see smoke in that area at all.”– Harry Lichtman, a New Hampshire Resident.
New Hampshire dealt with some abnormally warm weather for springtime over the weekend, which has been on top of a dry spout. In spite of wildfires being rare in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the region has dealt with two in the last week. The first of which was the Centennial Fire, which is now 100% contained. The second one is currently occurring in Crawford Notch, which began Saturday morning. WMUR reports that the Bemis Fire scorched 175 acres on Saturday, but rainfall on Saturday helped reduce it to 106 acres. There are three separate fires that are part of this: burning 58, 15, and 32 acres respectively. While the thunder and rain help subside its growth, it remains 0% contained. Firefighting efforts are being complicated by the recent thunderstorms, slippery conditions from the recent wet weather, and it is located on steep and rugged terrain.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but officials are reminding visitors to not build campfires. Two of the most popular trails in the region, Arethusa Falls and Ripley Falls, are currently closed due to their proximity to the fires. This is far from the most severe wildfire in the United States though, as the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyons forest fires in New Mexico have led to more than 278,000 acres being burnt, as it inches closer to multiple ski resorts.
Update May 16th, 4:45 PM: Thanks to rain yesterday and today, the fire is now 25% contained.
Image/Video Credits: White Mountain National Forest, WMUR
