(KTNV) — A new wildfire is burning on federal land north of the Las Vegas Valley, this one located 20 miles northeast of Beatty.
The 8,000-acre blaze has been named the Cat Canyon Fire, according to information provided by the Bureau of Land Management. As of Monday morning, the fire is said to be zero percent "complete." (As opposed to containment, completion is a term wildland firefighters use to describe firefighting efforts where their strategy is to confine and contain the fire, rather than fully suppress it. This is more common in cases where a wildfire is not threatening communities or residences.)
According to the BLM, the Cat Canyon Fire is burning on land within the Nevada Test and Training Range and the Nevada National Security Site, which the BLM notes is a restricted area always closed to the public, regardless of fire activity.
The fire was first reported at 6:14 p.m. on Saturday, officials stated. While the cause is under investigation, officials noted that "There was significant lightning in the area within the last 48 hours."
"The fire is expected to continue to grow, especially in the afternoon," fire officials wrote.
This is now the second major wildfire burning within the Nevada Test and Training Range/Nevada National Security Site. Meanwhile, the lightning-caused Gothic Fire continues to burn and was last estimated to have consumed close to 36,000 acres. (For reference, one acre is roughly the size of a football field.) As of Friday afternoon, the Gothic Fire was listed at 25% completion.
Last week, smoke from the Gothic Fire blew into the Las Vegas Valley, contributing to hazy skies and poor air quality.
Drought conditions have exploded in Nevada. Geneva Zoltek explains what this means for wildfire risk:
As Channel 13 climate reporter Geneva Zoltek learned, wildfire danger has increased in Nevada over the past year, along with worsening drought conditions. Since last July, the percentage of Nevada land facing abnormally dry to extreme drought conditions has increased by more than 350%. That means more than 2 million Silver State residents now live in drought-stricken areas.
Those factors combined mean "it's easier for them to ignite; it's easier for fires to spread rapidly, and it also causes our fire seasons to start earlier and last longer," Shane Kelly, BLM fire prevention specialist for Southern Nevada, told Channel 13.
In light of these risks, the BLM is urging the public to remember "the best time to prepare for a wildfire is before it ignites."
Those who want to learn more about planning for evacuations or reducing threats to their homes can find resources on livingwithfire.org.
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