Press Release
Contact
(603) 271-3136 | shelly.angers@dncr.nh.gov
Colleen Mainville, White Mountain National Forest
(603) 790-0860 | colleen.mainville@usda.gov
Bemis Fire Media Advisory – May 20, 2022
Conway, NH – Continued work by firefighters as well as soaking rains have helped subside the Bemis Fire, which is expected to be 100 percent contained Friday evening, nearly one week after being identified.
Firefighters remain on the scene and are currently focused primarily on identifying and suppressing any residual fire behavior, searching for hot spots and mopping up any remaining fire activity. The fire burned 106 acres and was situated primarily in steep, rugged terrain. No structures have been impacted by the fire.
“It’s important for the public to know that the Bemis Fire remains an active fire scene and there are still firefighters and equipment on site ,” said Capt. Adrian Reyes of the N.H. Forest Protection Bureau. “This weekend is expected to bring record temperatures to the region, and we ask that anyone wishing to spend time outdoors avoids the area of the fire, for their own safety as well as for the safety of the wildland crew.”
Several recreational trails located in Crawford Notch State Park were closed throughout the week. Trail status updates may be found at nhstateparks.org as well as from N.H. State Parks’ social media sites, which can be accessed from that website.
Incident updates about the Bemis Fire will be made as they become available on the following social media accounts:
- N.H. Division of Forests and Lands Twitter: @NHForestRangers
- White Mountain National Forest Facebook: @WhiteMountainNF
- White Mountain National Forest Twitter: @WhiteMountainNF
In order to allow official aviation resources’ safe operation on the fire, a temporary flight restriction remains in place. The use of drones by members of the public within TFR is prohibited.
The cause of the Bemis Fire is under investigation. Anyone with information about the incident, including any photographs of the early stages of the fire on Saturday, May 14, is asked to contact Capt. Michael Matson from the N.H. Forest Protection Bureau at 603-227-8731, michael.j.matson@dncr.nh.gov.
Situated in Crawford Notch State Park, the White Mountain National Forest, and on private lands adjacent to N.H. Route 302, the “Bemis Fire” was so named due to its location near Bemis Brook. For incident management purposes, the fire was divided into three non-contiguous divisions: A, B and C.
Incident commanders from the N.H. Division of Forests and Lands – Forest Protection Bureau and the White Mountain National Forest have worked in unified command to manage the incident.
Members of the public are encouraged to be attentive and do their part to prevent human-caused wildfires and respect closure areas. Information about obtaining a fire permit is available online at nhfirepermit.com.
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