No longer in the daily fire updates. The Cato 2 Fire last appeared in an official report on August 17, 2026, at 2,080 acres and 100% contained. Fires drop off this list once crews have them contained or out; we keep the page for reference. See fires burning now →

Cato 2 Fire

Chaves County, New Mexico · Wildfire

No longer active Official numbers updated Aug 17, 2026 (about 2 months ago)
First reported about 7 weeks ago
Metric Now
Size
2,080 acres
Oct 1, 7:00 PM
Containment
100%
Oct 1, 7:00 PM
+40 percent
was 60% · Aug 17, 3:01 PM
Crew size
6
Oct 1, 7:00 PM
−2
was 8 · Aug 17, 3:01 PM
Money spent
$20,000
Oct 1, 7:00 PM

Cato 2 Fire and other nearby fires

🔥 Where this fire started Mostly contained Partly contained Containment not reported

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Cato 2 Fire summary

The Cato 2 Fire is a wildfire near Chaves County, New Mexico. It has burned about 2,080 acres (about 2,000 football fields). Crews have it fully contained, with a line all the way around it. It was first reported about 7 weeks ago. About 6 people are on it, run by a Type 4 IC.

Size
2,080 acres
Containment
100%
Discovered
August 15, 2026 (first reported about 7 weeks ago)
Cause
Not reported

The size and containment above are current as of Monday, August 17th at 5:01 p.m. CDT.

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Weather & fire-spread conditions

No Red Flag Warning. The National Weather Service hasn't flagged this area for dangerous fire-spread conditions right now.

Hot, dry, and windy weather can help a fire grow; cool, calm, or wet weather helps crews. The tags below rate each day for fire spread — green is calm, red can push a fire.

A general fire-weather guide (wind matters most, then how dry it is, then heat), not a prediction of what a specific fire will do.

Day Night
This Afternoon
95°F · Sunny
Wind 10 mph SE · 1% rain
Wind: Breezy Heat: Hot Dry
69°F · Clear
Wind 5 to 10 mph S · 3% rain
Wind: Breezy Heat: Cool Dry
Tuesday
97°F · Sunny
Wind 10 mph S · 0% rain
Wind: Breezy Heat: Hot Dry
70°F · Mostly Clear
Wind 10 to 15 mph S · 2% rain
Wind: Breezy Heat: Cool Dry
Wednesday
100°F · Sunny
Wind 5 to 10 mph S · 1% rain
Wind: Breezy Heat: Very hot Dry
—

Forecast from the National Weather Service (weather.gov), pulled Monday, August 17th at 5:08 p.m. CDT.

Who's on it

About 6 people are assigned to this fire, run by a Type 4 IC. About $20,000 has been spent on it so far.

The official feed reports the total headcount, not a breakdown by crew type.

Where to get live updates

We show the daily official picture. For minute-by-minute updates, evacuation orders, and maps, these do it best:

Nearby fires to Cato 2 Fire

No other active fires are near this one right now. It's on its own.

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