The 1977 La Mesa Fire: A Wake Up Call?

On the anniversary week of one of the most significant fires of the Jemez Mountains, Teralene Foxx will address what she has learned in over 30 years of studies on the subject. She will address why this 15,000 acre fire is significant, even though we have had several massive wildfires since 2000.

On Wednesday, June 18th at 5:30 p.m., Foxx will lead a walk sponsored by PEEC and Bandelier National Monument to study plots on Burnt Mesa. On this short, easy walk, participants will be able to see, first-hand, the influence of fire on the ecological succession of the area. No advance registration is required.  Meet at the trailhead at 5:30.  Directions: Coming from Los Alamos, drive past LANL on West Jemez Road.  At the intersection with SR 4, turn LEFT (towards Bandelier entrance).  Go 2 miles and turn right into the dirt parking lot.

There will also be a corresponding talk at Fuller Lodge the previous evening, on June 17th at 7:30 p.m., sponsored by the Los Alamos Historical Society and Bandelier National Monument. 

At approximately 3:55 p.m., on June 16, 1977, under a cloudless sky, a fire crew responded to a fire on Mesa del Rito. Within hours, the fire raced across the mesas and canyons of Bandelier National Monument and the Santa Fe National Forest. On June 18th the fire crossed State Route 4 into Los Alamos National Laboratory and headed for the community of Los Alamos. For six long days and nights the fire was fought and finally contained on June 22 at 4:00 p.m.  It had burned approximately 15,000 acres.

The La Mesa fire represents several firsts:

• It was the first large fire in the Jemez in over 80 years. By today’s standards, it was a very small fire but in 1977 it was considered to be a very large fire.
• It was the first fire in the Jemez Mountains that brought together researchers from various disciplines to study the effects of fire on the ecosystem. Studies ranged from fire history, hydrology, nitrogen cycling, fungi, arthropods, birds, mammals, and plant succession. Two major symposia were held on the research results. 
• It was the first time archaeologists were on the fire line and cultural resources were evaluated.
• It was the fire that sounded the alarm of the potential for mega fires in the Jemez Mountains. It was said to be a “wake up call.” But was it?
• It is also one of the first fires in the area on which long-term studies have been conducted.

For the past 37 years, Teralene Foxx has followed the effects of fire on plant succession. Her long-term study has been written up in three volumes: a major report, a report of the effects of fire on plants, and a comparative photographic study from 1975 to 2012.