By Dalina Castellanos
30 May 2012 The Whitewater-Baldy Complex fire in New Mexico hasn’t just broken the record for the largest blaze in state history, it’s shattered it. An infrared reading about midnight Tuesday measured the fire at 170,272 acres, leaving last year’s 156,593-acre Las Conchas fire in the dust. That acreage roughly translates to 269 square miles, more than half the size of city of Los Angeles. “The fire seems to be growing in all directions,” fire information officer Gerry Perry told the Los Angeles Times. “It’s certainly been a complicated fire.” It has indeed. The fire — a combination of two fires, both started by lightning — has been burning for two weeks and is at 0% containment, Perry said. The low humidity and high wind, combined with the Gila National Forest’s rugged terrain, have made fighting the fire particularly challenging. […]

Gila wildfire becomes biggest in New Mexico history

30 May 2012 (MSNBC) – A wildfire burning in the Gila National Forest consumed nearly 20,000 more acres in a day and is now, by far, the largest blaze on record in New Mexico, a fire incident spokesman told msnbc.com. “It’s certainly not a record we’re happy with,” Gerry Perry said in reporting that aerial infrared readings last night led to a new count: 170,272 acres, or 265 square miles, burned — up from 152,000 acres on Tuesday. The Whitewater-Baldy Complex Fire surpassed the 2011 Las Conchas Fire, which had been the largest on record in New Mexico at 157,000 acres. That blaze threatened property around Los Alamos National Laboratory, the nation’s premier nuclear facility. More than 1,200 firefighters and 12 helicopters from around the state are fighting the blaze. Perry said continued extremely low humidity is making efforts against the fire difficult. The fire is at zero containment and officials fear it will burn until the monsoon rain season in July. Two lightning-sparked fires merged last week to form the giant blaze, which has destroyed 12 cabins and seven small outbuildings. One fire was first spotted May 9 and the second blaze was sparked May 16, but nearly all of the growth has come in recent days due to relentless winds. Officials also said a “record breaking dry air mass” and persistent drought in the region contributed to the fire’s growth. […]

Wildfire shatters record for largest in New Mexico