Forest wildfire becomes largest in NM history

A massive wildfire that has burned more than 265 square miles in the Gila National Forest has become the largest fire in New Mexico history, fire officials confirmed Wednesday. The erratic blaze grew overnight to more than 170,000 acres, surpassing a blaze last year that burned 156,593 acres in Los Conchas and threatened the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the nation’s premier nuclear facility. And experts says the mammoth fire may be just a preview of what’s to come in part of the western United States after months of drought and dry conditions.