By SUE MAJOR HOLMES | Associated Press Writer ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - In the past few years, Rich Nieto's work has started earlier and lasted longer. The regional fire operations director for the Southwest Coordination Center said the West's fire season used to stretch from May into August or September, starting with blazes flaring up in the Southwest's arid spring. But now fires touch off in April or earlier, and the season sometimes stretches into October, said Nieto, whose job entails allocating and moving ground-based firefighting resources. "We have to adjust accordingly," he said. A longer fire season can't be blamed solely on climate change or drought. More and more people want out of the cities and into the country -- which in the West often means a place in the forest. That raises the potential of more fires started by...
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