Wildfire — Quay County, New Mexico

2017-06-21 · Quay County, New Mexico

Event narrative

A wildfire that developed in Quay County experienced a 180 degree wind shift and burned over two volunteer firefighters while they were refilling their water tanker. One firefighter was killed and the other sustained burn injuries. The injured firefighter was released from the hospital.

Wider weather episode

A strong dome of high pressure centered over the southwestern United States along with exceptionally dry air set the stage for a brutal heatwave over New Mexico for several days. The excessive heat starting building over central and western New Mexico on the 20th then spread eastward on the 21st before peaking on the 22nd. A back door cold front pushed into eastern New Mexico on the 23rd bringing relief to the hot temperatures for parts of the area. However, central and western New Mexico continued to bake in the heat through the 23rd. High temperatures ranged from 100 to 110 degrees over nearly the entire state while relative humidity values fell to as low as one percent in some areas. Dozens of record high maximum and record high minimum temperatures were set across the region. Only locations with records that extend back several decades were included in the heatwave summary. A wildfire that broke out in Quay County burned over two volunteer firefighters while they were refilling a water tanker. Unfortunately, one of the firefighters was killed and another was injured.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 700786. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.