( CNN ) -- If the still raging fires did n't destroy their homes , New Mexico residents could be done in by flash flooding this monsoon season -- the ravaged landscape heightening the danger , and likelihood , of mudslides and other problems . Despite rain over the weekend , the Las Conchas fire continues to burn around Los Alamos . Nearly 1,900 personnel have worked to contain 45 percent of a blaze that 's scorched more than 146,000 acres and more than 100 buildings , according to the website of the federal Interagency Management Team that is overseeing the firefight . With monsoon season having just kicked off , more precipitation could help firefighters contain the wildfire , one of several still burning in the Southwest . Yet it is not all good news , as torrential downpours -- which will likely occur into September -- may also cause further ruin in already hard-hit areas . `` It will simply take just one thunderstorm in the right area of a burn scar to potentially have devastating affects , '' National Weather Service meteorologist Kerry Jones said . `` That could happen tomorrow or Tuesday , or a month from now , or both . '' Robyn Broyles , a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Interior 's Burned Area Emergency Rehabilitation team , explained that forests , shrubs and other flora generally mitigate the impact of monsoon rains . Such plant life largely has been charred and flattened by the weeks-long Las Conchas fire . And the fact that the fire has affected acres upon acres of hilly , mountainous terrain makes fast-moving mudslides even more dangerous -- and likely . `` There 's no vegetation left on the landscape to keep the water in place when the monsoon hits , '' Broyles said . Jones added , in an e-mail to CNN , that `` severely burned soil can be a water repellent '' and effectively act like pavement , with water quickly flowing over it and bringing ash , silt , sand and assorted debris along with it . `` ( Those mudslides ) then may damage or destroy culverts , bridges , roads and buildings , potentially causing injury or death , '' he explained . That danger is imminent in northern and central New Mexico . A monsoon `` burst , '' meaning a period of intense rain , was expected Monday and Tuesday in the area that 's been a hotbed for wildfires since last month , said Jones . That 's why the weather service issued a flash flood watch into Monday evening for a large swath of New Mexico including the Jemez and Sangre de Cristo mountains . Between a half inch to an inch of rain could fall within 30 minutes at times . Still , even though it is now monsoon season , that does not mean that new fires could n't break out or that old ones could not continue to spread . As Jones noted , there likely will be `` breaks '' over the summer with little to no precipitation , and possibly high temperatures and strong winds . On Sunday night at Los Alamos Airport , for instance , the humidity was 18 % to 20 % , the weather service said -- even though thunderstorms could hit within hours . That continued wildfire danger is why Albuquerque and Bernalillo County continue to keep the Bosque , Rio Grande Valley State Park and all open space areas closed to the public -- even with rains on the way -- the city 's website reports .
The Las Conchas fire is 100 percent contained , having burned more than 146,000 acres . As the fire rages , a flash flood watch is issued for northern and central New Mexico . An official notes that in places there 's no vegetation to contain intense heat . A meteorologist says fire - scarred trees are water - repellent , acting like pavement .