New Mexico forester lifts statewide fire restrictions after recent rains

New Mexico State Forester Laura McCarthy announced Monday that she is rescinding fire restrictions on state lands after recent rainfall statewide alleviated risk of wildfire ignition and spread. 

Late-season monsoons in recent weeks mean that New Mexico has seen more than twice as much rain as average in September. Forecasters are predicting even more rainfall, along with potential flooding, throughout most of the state Monday through late Tuesday.

The amount of rainfall prompted McCarthy to rescind restrictions on campfires, pile burns and other ignitions on state lands, she said in a statement Monday. Those restrictions had been in place since April. 

“While fire restrictions are lifting, the public should continue to be vigilant about preventing human-caused wildfires, especially when conducting fall agricultural burns and at hunting camps,” McCarthy said. 

The restrictions prohibited smoking, campfires and fireworks excepted in certain circumstances, as well as prescribed burns, methane flaring by oil and gas operators and other types of potentially hazardous activity. 

Officials with the New Mexico State Forestry Division noted in the announcement Monday that year-to-date precipitation remains much below average in New Mexico, following record-low snowpack this winter and intense drought this summer. 

New Mexico also experienced an above-average number of wildfire starts in 2026, which state officials attributed to dry lightning in the state’s eastern plains and ongoing drought.

Since Jan. 1, according to state Forestry Division data, New Mexico has seen more than 1,700 wildfire ignitions that have burned nearly 190,000 acres across the state.