Wildfire Now New Mexico’s Largest Recorded

A wildfire in New Mexico’s Gila National Forest has consumed 170,252 acres, making it the largest wildfire on record in New Mexico, a fire incident spokesman told the news website msnbc.com.

“It’s certainly not a record we’re happy with,” Gerry Perry told the website in reporting that aerial infrared readings showed 265 square miles burned.

The fire, known as the Whitewater-Baldy Complex Fire, surpassed the 2011 Las Conchas Fire’s 157,000 acres consumed.

Some 1,200 firefighters from around the state are fighting the blaze, which is at zero containment.