A record March heat wave that occurred amid historic snow drought means that most of New Mexico will experience above-normal wildfire risk over the next two months, according to a new outlook forecasters released this week.
The National Interagency Fire Center’s new monthly outlook details the severity of the March heat wave across New Mexico and the West. For example, in Albuquerque, forecasters noted, temperatures hit 90 degrees on March 21, six weeks earlier than the previous record of May 3, set in 1947.
The heat wave contributed to expanded drought conditions across the state and resulted in an early melt-off of an already minimal snow pack across New Mexico and the rest of the West. The melt-off occurred between four and six weeks earlier than normal, according to the outlook, at a time when most locations across the West usually experience their highest snow pack levels of the year…