SANTA FE, New Mexico, April 30 -- Brisk winds accompanying drier weather Tuesday were expected to create nightmare conditions for firefighters battling a brush fire that has consumed more than 14,600 acres near Los Alamos. By 7 p.m. Monday, fire officials reported 20 percent containment of the blaze, that was sparked Friday by an abandoned campfire.
But weather conditions Tuesday were expected to set back efforts to put out the fire that bordered the Bandelier National Monument, said Jamie Kingsbury, public information officer for the so-called 'Dome Fire.' 'We completed about five miles of burn-out operations on the perimeter of the fire (Monday). It was very successful,' Kingsbury said. '(Tuesday) will be critical for holding the fire because of the predicted weather which is expected to be hotter and drier. The winds also are expected to pickup,' she said. 'That's why we worked on the burn-out operation because of weather predictions.' Nearly 800 firefighters have been battling the blaze using fleets of fire trucks, bulldozers and air tankers, said Adam Medina, dispatcher for the State Radio Communications Center. Medina said the blaze began after two campers failed to properly extinguish a campfire before leaving their campsite. 'The cause of the Dome Fire is an abandoned campfire. They didn't take care of their campfire before they abandoned it,' he said. 'Two people were found and arrested.'
