Officials give final update on Las Tusas Fire in San Miguel County

SAN MIGUEL COUNTY, N.M. — Officials gave the final update Monday on the Las Tusas Fire, which they say burned multiple structures in San Miguel County.

The fire started Wednesday on private land west of Sapello, around 46 miles north of Las Vegas. As of Monday, the fire burned 978 acres and is at 90% containment.

Last Friday, it stood at around 969 acres in size – and 0% containment. They originally estimated it at 1,000 acres until crews did more GPS work and flew to map the area better.

At the time, there were roughly 150 firefighters on the ground, including ones from departments across the state.

Calmer winds and cooler temperatures let them secure a perimeter overnight then. They worked Friday to secure the fire edge, mop up any possible threats to the fire line and protect nearby homes.

Evacuations were in place for people living along Highway 94 from Canoncito to the intersection with Highway 266. Officials lifted those.

Highway 94 is back open between milepost 0 and milepost 4.

Fire crews are still figuring out what caused the fire. They said the fire appears to be human-caused.

The fire is burning near the eastern edge of the Calf Canyon/Hermit’s Peak burn scar from 2022. 

Stay with KOB.com and KOB 4 News for updates.