Firefighters continue to work on isolated hot spots, authorities say

In an update Saturday, the Southwest Zone 5 Incident Management Team reported that all areas of the village of Ruidoso are now open to residents as workers work to restore utilities and services to the area. Officials said the South Fork and Salt fires were both 77 percent contained as of Saturday. The combined fires have burned about 25,000 acres on private, public and tribal lands, according to the incident management team.

Officials say crews are continuing the “mop-up” work of eliminating hot spots inside the fires using infrared detection to identify where the remaining hot spots are.

Smoke could still have an impact in areas where fires are raging late and into the early morning hours, authorities said.

Officials say evacuation sites on the Mescalero Reservation have been closed, but donations can still be brought to the Inn of the Mountain Gods Convention Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. FEMA is located at the Mescalero Community Center from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. while the agency assists the public, according to officials. Residents affected by fires and flooding in Lincoln and Otero counties and the Mescalero Apache Tribe can request disaster assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov, by downloading the FEMA mobile app, or by calling the disaster assistance line. FEMA assistance at 800-621-3362 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. 10:00 p.m. MT.

More information:
Inciweb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/nmmea-south-fork-and-salt

Smoke forecast: https://outlooks.wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlook/430b2c05

Lincoln County Government: https://lincolncountynm.gov/

Mescalero Apache Tribe: https://mescaleroapachetribe.com

Village of Ruidoso: https://www.ruidoso-nm.gov/south-fork-fire