Silver Fire Continues to Pose Challenges
 
SAN LORENZO, NM – The Silver Fire is presently 21,400 acres. Firefighters continue to focus on protection of the Kingston and Royal John Mine area as well construction of fire lines. Incident Commander Curtis Heaton said, “We have a good plan but it will take time to contain the fire. Steep rugged terrain, heavy fuel load and warm, windy weather will continue to challenge firefighters.” Citizens can learn more about how the Northern Arizona Team is managing the fire by attending scheduled public meetings.
 
Public meetings will be held for Mimbres and Silver City. The Mimbres meeting is today, Friday, at 6 p.m. at the Roundup Lodge on Acklin Hill Road in San Lorenzo. The Silver City meeting will be at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Grant County Administration Building located at 1400 US Highway 180 East in Silver City. Additional meetings are held each morning at the Hillsboro Community Center at 10 a.m.

 
Gila National Forest officials want to remind the general public that the forest is open to recreation except in the restricted fire area.
 
To ensure public safety, the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Area has been closed east of NM State Highway 152 from the Continental Divide Trail #74 south to Reeds Peak. NM State Highway 152 from San Lorenzo to Hillsboro remains closed. The road closure is for east and westbound traffic from 35 miles east of Bayard at mile marker 16 to 10 miles west of Hillsboro at mile marker 40. Trail #79 and the Royal John Road are also closed for public safety. For more information see http://fs.usda.gov/gila  or www.nmroads.com.
 
Silver Fire updates can be found on Inciweb at http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/3414. For additional fire information visit the following websites: www.facebook.com/SilverFireNM, www.flickr.com/gilaforest, www.twitter.com/SilverFireNM.