Date: March 26, 2008
Contact: Corky Hays, 435-692-1234 (x15)

As soon as weather conditions allow, the National Park Service plans to undertake a prescribed fire project at Natural Bridges National Monument according to Superintendent Corky Hays.

The project involves eliminating over 5,000 hand piles of slash along the monument entrance road and could begin as early as the first week of April. The burn project is the final phase of a fuel break construction project along the four-mile stretch of road from State Highway 95 to the monument visitor center. The fuel break work thinned out the dense pinon/juniper woodland and removed dead and downed fuels to lessen the risk of a dangerous crown fire. The fuel break along the road should aid firefighting and evacuation procedures in the event of a large wildfire in or around the monument.

Approximately 150 acres are planned for ignition as soon as weather and fuel conditions are favorable. The project should take 6-8 days to complete.

Fire managers want to emphasize that this prescribed fire project will only occur if and when optimum weather, fuel moisture, and smoke parameters are met. For additional information please contact Allan Farnsworth, Mesa Verde Fire Officer, at 970-529-5049.