La Mesa Fire

The La Mesa Fire was a 1977 wildfire on the Pajarito Plateau of New Mexico, in the Southwestern United States.

The fire was human-caused (likely a spark from a motorcycle) on the afternoon of 16 June 1977, in Los Alamos County.

[2] Resources deployed to contain the fire included 1370 personnel, 9 bulldozers, 23 ground engines, 5 air tankers and 5 helicopters.

[3] One human life was lost when a firefighter suffered a massive heart attack while fleeing the first major blowup of the La Mesa Fire.

[citation needed] La Mesa Fire is one of several major wildfires in the recent history of the Pajarito Plateau:

Archeologists precede bulldozers along the fire lines of the La Mesa Fire to identify archeological resources