# Johnson Fire

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2021 wildfire in Gila National Forest, New Mexico, U.S.

Johnson Fire Part of the 2021 New Mexico wildfires Smoke from the Johnson Fire as seen from space Date(s) May 20, 2021 (2021-05-20) – July 23, 2021 (2021-07-23) Location Gila National Forest Coordinates 33°14′17″N 108°28′23″W / 33.238°N 108.473°W / 33.238; -108.473 Statistics Burned area 88,918 acres (35,984 ha) Ignition Cause Lightning Map Location in Southern New Mexico

The **Johnson Fire** was a wildfire that started in [Gila National Forest](/source/Gila_National_Forest) near [Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument](/source/Gila_Cliff_Dwellings_National_Monument) and the town of [Silver City](/source/Silver_City%2C_New_Mexico), [New Mexico](/source/New_Mexico) on May 20, 2021. The fire burned 88,918 acres (35,984 ha) and was fully contained on July 23, 2021.[1][2] It was the largest wildfire in the [United States](/source/United_States) of the [2021 wildfire season](/source/2021_wildfire_season) until June 6, 2021.[1][3][4]

## Events

### May

The Johnson Fire was first reported at around 12:00 am [MDT](/source/Mountain_Time_Zone) on May 20, 2021.[1][3]

### Cause

The cause of the fire is believed to be due to a lightning strike.[1][5][3][6]

### Containment

On July 23, 2021, the Johnson Fire reached 100% containment.[1]

## Impact

### Closures and Evacuations

The Johnson Fire has led to the closure of multiple trails and roads in Gila National Forest, including Royal John Rd., Black Range Crest Trail, Grandview Trail and Trujillo Trail. It has also forced the closure of [State Highway 152](/source/New_Mexico_State_Road_152) between the mileposts 28 and 40.[7]

The [National Park Service](/source/National_Park_Service) closed the [Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument](/source/Gila_Cliff_Dwellings_National_Monument) on June 5, 2021, and will remain closed until their order is rescinded.[8]

## See also

- [2021 New Mexico wildfires](/source/2021_New_Mexico_wildfires)

- [List of New Mexico wildfires](/source/List_of_New_Mexico_wildfires)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:0_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:0_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:0_1-4) ["Johnson Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System"](https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7493/). *inciweb.nwcg.gov*. Retrieved May 28, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["National Interagency Coordination Center Incident Management Situation Report Friday, July 23, 2021– 0730 MDT National Preparedness Level 5"](https://www.predictiveservices.nifc.gov/IMSR/2021/20210723IMSR.pdf) (PDF). *nifc.gov*. July 23, 2021. Retrieved July 23, 2021.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:2_3-2) Romero, Leah. ["Lighting starts three new Gila National Forest fires, including one near monument"](https://web.archive.org/web/20210602214323/https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/05/21/gila-national-forest-fires-start-after-lightning/5210952001/). *Silver City Sun-News*. Archived from [the original](https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/05/21/gila-national-forest-fires-start-after-lightning/5210952001/) on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Romero, Leah. ["Johnson Fire grows over the weekend, now at nearly 45,000 acres in Gila National Forest"](https://web.archive.org/web/20210608180644/https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/06/08/johnson-fire-nm-gila-grows-over-weekend-national-forest/7601975002/). *Silver City Sun-News*. Archived from [the original](https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/06/08/johnson-fire-nm-gila-grows-over-weekend-national-forest/7601975002/) on June 8, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:1_5-0)** ["Johnson Fire burns about 18,184 acres in Gila National Forest, unknown containment"](https://www.krqe.com/news/wildfires/johnson-fire-burns-in-gila-national-forest/). *KRQE News 13 Albuquerque - Santa Fe*. May 21, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["New Mexico fires burn over Memorial Day weekend amid drought"](https://apnews.com/article/nm-state-wire-new-mexico-fires-business-environment-and-nature-eeb38e584b502264141efe7af102614b). *AP NEWS*. May 31, 2021. Retrieved June 1, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Romero, Leah. ["Trails, roads closed as Gila wildfires continue"](https://web.archive.org/web/20210602212502/https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/05/27/trails-roads-closed-gila-wildfires-continue-johnson-fire-doagy-fire/7467729002/). *Silver City Sun-News*. Archived from [the original](https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/05/27/trails-roads-closed-gila-wildfires-continue-johnson-fire-doagy-fire/7467729002/) on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Romero, Leah. ["Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument temporarily closed beginning Saturday"](https://web.archive.org/web/20210605072200/https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/06/04/new-mexico-gila-cliff-dwellings-national-monument-closed-beginning-saturday/7535748002/). *Silver City Sun-News*. Archived from [the original](https://www.scsun-news.com/story/news/2021/06/04/new-mexico-gila-cliff-dwellings-national-monument-closed-beginning-saturday/7535748002/) on June 5, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.

v t e Wildfires in 2021 Africa Algeria South Africa (Cape Town) Asia India Dzüko Valley Simlipal forest Israel Russia Turkey Europe Cyprus Arakapas France Greece Italy North America Canada British Columbia Lytton White Rock Lake Mexico Nuevo León United States Arizona Clifton Globe Copper Canyon Mescal Payson Perkinsville Prescott National Forest Safford Superior Wickenburg California Colorado Boulder County Idaho Riggins Snake River Kansas Minnesota Arrowhead New Mexico Oregon Texas Washington South America Argentine Patagonia Chilean Patagonia Oceania Australia 2020–21 Wooroloo 2021-22 Beechina ◀ 2020 2022 ▶

v t e New Mexico wildfires 1950s Capitan Gap (1950) Water Canyon (1954) 1970s Salvation (1974) La Mesa (1977) 1990s Dome (1996) Oso Complex (1998) 2000s Cerro Grande (2000) Ponil Complex (2002) Trigo (2008) 2010s Wallow (2011) Las Conchas (2011) Little Bear (2012) Whitewater–Baldy Complex (2012) Ute Park (2018) 2020s Vics Peak Fire (2020) Johnson (2021) Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak (2022) McBride (2022) Cooks Peak (2022) Black (2022) Salt Fire (2024) South Fork Fire (2024) Year articles 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Category Commons

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Johnson Fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnson_Fire) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnson_Fire?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.