>> Laura: WHY IS THIS FIRE  GROWING SO FAST?

>> Gonzales: I GUESS I WOULD  SAY THAT WHEN WE LOOK AT FIRE BEHAVIOR, EVERYTHING THAT WE  ARE LOOKING AT IS FUEL, WEATHER AND TOPOGRAPHY.

ON THE NIGHT OF THE 13TH AND THE DAY OF THE 14TH AND FOR  SEVERAL DAYS FOLLOWING, ALL THREE OF THOSE ELEMENTS WERE  IN ALIGNMENT AND ALL THREE OF THOSE ELEMENTS ARE KIND OF AT  THE EXTREME END.

WITH FUEL, NO SURPRISE SAYING  SOUTHWEST HAS BEEN IN A PRETTY BAD DROUGHT, SO WE ARE DEALING  WITH A LOT OF DROUGHT STRESSED FUEL AND ONE OF THE THINGS  THAT COMPLICATED THIS AREA HERE IS LAST SUMMER WE HAD  FANTASTIC MONSOONAL MOISTURE SO WE GREW A LOT OF GRASS.

SO IN BETWEEN ALL THOSE DROUGHT STRESSED FUELS, WE HAD  A LOT OF GRASS TO CARRY THE FIRE.

THE OTHER THING FOR TOPOGRAPHY IN THE GILA AND THE ALDO  LEOPOLD WILDERNESS IT IS ABOUT AS COMPLEX A TOPOGRAPHY AS  YOU'LL FIND IN THE SOUTHWEST.

>> Laura: IN TERMS OF  TOPOGRAPHY BUT ALSO THE FUELS, WHAT IS THE FIRE BURNING  THROUGH RIGHT NOW?

I KNOW IT IS BIG.

>> Gonzales: YEAH, THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE, YOU  KNOW, GRASS AND BRUSH AND SOME OAK TREES AND AS YOU CLIMB UP  IN ELEVATION, TRANSITION FROM PINE, JUNIPER AND THEN ALL THE  WAY UP INTO MIXED CONIFER, PONDEROSA PINE AND A LITTLE  BIT OF ASPEN AT THE VERY CREST OF THE DIVIDE THERE.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT A PLAN, WE KIND OF START TO LOSE  PERSPECTIVE OF HOW BIG THIS IS.

THIS IS LOOKING OVER FROM THE SOUTHEAST CORNER AND LOOKING  UP I THINK THAT IS SOUTH PALOMAS CREEK AND THIS IS  LOOKING DOWN FROM THE HERMOSA COUNTRY 6,000 FEET, 6100 FEET  UP TOWARDS REED MOUNTAIN, THAT IS JUST AT 10,000 FEET.

SO, YOU CAN SEE THE TRANSITION FROM THE FUEL DOWN IN THAT LOW  GRASS, JUNIPER, ALL THE WAY UP TO THE TOP, PINE.

THAT IS LOOKING INTO THE SILVER FIRE, 2013, BUT THAT IS  JUST RUGGED COUNTRY.

THAT IS TOUGH HIKING JUST --  THAT IS A COUPLE DAYS HIKING JUST TO GET UP TO THE TOP LET  ALONE MANAGER FIRE ACROSS THERE.

JUST A GOOD EXAMPLE OF WHAT THIS FIRE IS BURNING IN AND  HOW RUGGED THE COUNTRY IS.

>> Laura: YOU MENTIONED THE  SILVER FIRE.

I AM ALSO CURIOUS IF THE FIRE  IS BURNING THROUGH AREAS -- YOU KNOW, THE GILA NATIONAL  FOREST HAS DONE A LOT OF WORK WITH RESPECT TO FIRE AND  TREATMENT.

SO, I AM CURIOUS HOW THE FIRE IS ACTING IN BURN SCARS OR  PRESCRIBED OR TREATED AREA VERSUS, MAYBE, AREAS THAT  HAVEN'T SEEN FIRE IN A WHILE?

>> Gonzales: YOU'RE RIGHT.

YOU KNOW, GILA NATIONAL FOREST, ONE OF THE LEADERS IN  THE ENTIRE COUNTRY WITH THE USE OF FIRE PRESCRIBED FIRE,  NATURAL FIRE, BUT UNDER CONDITIONS LIKE THIS, YOU  KNOW, IT IS STILL GOING TO MOVE THROUGH THOSE UNITS,  THOSE AREAS.

THEY ARE DESIGNED TO SLOW  FIRE, BRING FIRE TO THE GROUND, JUST REDUCE THAT  UNNATURAL HIGH SEVERITY TYPE FIRE.

SO WE NEVER EXPECTED THOSE THINGS TO STOP THIS FIRE BUT  WHAT IT DID GIVE US IS AN ADDITIONAL TIME AND SPACE TO  MAKE SOME OF THE DECISIONS.

SO, WHAT I HAVE GOT UP HERE  LAURA IS ENERGY RELEASE COMPONENT CHART.

TO SUMMARIZE, WHAT IS THIS, IT IS A SEASONAL INDICATOR OF THE  AMOUNT OF ENERGY AVAILABLE AT THE FLAMING FRONT OF A FIRE.

THIS IS FROM THE BEAVER HEAD.

IT IS JUST ABOVE THE FIRE FROM  2000, 2021.

THE KEY THING HERE IS THAT RED LINE IS THE HIGHEST INDICES  THAT HAS BEEN RECORDED SINCE 2000.

THE GRAY IS THE AVERAGE LINE AND EVERYBODY IN THE SOUTHWEST  KIND OF UNDERSTANDS THAT PEAK THERE.

THAT IS JUST BEFORE MONSOONS AND THEN WE DROP OFF.

THAT BLACK LINE IS TRACKING 2022.

SO WE WERE SETTING ALL-TIME HIGHS.

THIS IS CONDITIONS THAT WE JUST HAVE NOT SEEN BEFORE AND  IT IS DEFINITELY A MONTH, MONTH-AND-A-HALF AHEAD.

HERE IS A SLIDE, LAURA, TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS.

WHAT YOU'RE SEEING HERE IS A GOOGLE EARTH IMAGE.

IN THE LOWER LEFT-HAND CORNER YOU HAVE A RED OUTLINE THAT IS  THE FIRE PERIMETER ON MAY 21, I BELIEVE, THERE, OR MAY 15,  SORRY.

AND THAT LOWER ONE, YOU CAN  SEE RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SCREEN THERE IS A YELLOW LINE  CALLED THE SOUTH 2019.

THAT WAS A WILDFIRE THAT  HAPPENED A FEW YEARS AGO AND AS THIS FIRE WAS GROWING AND  RAPIDLY PUSHING UPHILL TOWARDS THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE, YOU  CAN SEE WHERE THIS FIRE ACTUALLY HAD TO SPLIT AND GO  AROUND THAT.

SO, THAT PREVIOUS FOOTPRINT  THERE MADE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN HOW FAST THIS  FIRE MOVED UP AND JUST ABOVE THAT, YOU SEE THE TOP FELLOW,  THAT IS THE ROUND FIRE OF 2017.

YOU CAN SEE THE FIRE MOVING AROUND THAT.

LIKE SAY, THEY EVENTUALLY MOVED THROUGH THERE.

BUT WHAT IT DID, IS IT SLOWED THAT FIRE DOWN.

IT BROUGHT IT DOWN TO THE GROUND, VERY IMPORTANT FOR OUR  FIREFIGHTERS.

IT GAVE THEM MORE TIME AND  SPACE TO MAKE DECISIONS AND GET SOME LINE PREPPED OUT  AHEAD OF THAT.

IT REALLY SLOWED IT DOWN AND  THEN I AM GOING TO FLIP OVER ANOTHER PHOTO HERE REAL QUICK,  A PHOTO OF WHEN THAT MOVED THROUGH THAT ROUND FIRE THAT I  JUST TALKED ABOUT.

AND YOU CAN SEE THE FIRE THAT HAS MOVED THROUGH, IT IS NOW  MOVING OFF INTO THE BACKGROUND, MOVING ACROSS  THERE, BUT THE KEY THING IS THIS FIRE HAS ALREADY MOVED  THROUGH HERE AND YOU CAN STILL SEE A LOT OF STANDING TREES  AND GREEN CANOPY.

THAT IS WHAT THE INTENT OF  THOSE FUEL TREATMENTS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO.

SO IT REDUCES THE SEVERITY OF THESE FIRES AND REALLY HELPS  OUT AS WE CONTINUE TO MAKE PROGRESS AROUND THE NORTH SIDE  OF THIS FIRE, ON THAT RIGHT-HAND CORNER, YOU CAN SEE  A SEPARATE RED POLYGON.

THAT IS FIRING OPERATIONS.

THAT IS THE FIREFIGHTERS ARE DOING THAT TO GET AHEAD OF  THIS FIRE TO TRY TO BOX IT IN.

THEY ARE GOING TO BE COMING TO  SOME PRESCRIBED FIRE UNITS.

THE AREA 74 PRESCRIBED FIRE  UNIT THE GILA NATIONAL FOREST CONDUCTED IN 2018 AND THE  FIREFIGHTERS ARE ALREADY SEEING A DIFFERENCE IN FIRE.

THEY ARE ABLE TO HOLD THE FIRE.

THEY ARE ABLE TO BRING THE FIRE TO THE GROUND.

SO,  SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN PREVIOUS TREATMENTS AND HOW  THIS FIRE IS BURNING, COMPLETELY EXPECTED TO BURN  THROUGH BUT IT BRINGS IT DOWN TO A LOWER SEVERITY.