New Mexico wildfires: Governor declares state of emergency as thousands flee

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — At least one person has died in a New Mexico wildfire that forced thousands to evacuate, the governor's office said Tuesday.

“We don’t have additional details,” said Michael Coleman, communications director for Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. “Only one dead following the fire.”

The governor declared a countywide state of emergency, which extended to neighboring tribal lands and deployed National Guard troops after residents fled under evacuation orders Monday, with few time to recover their belongings.

Earlier, Lujan Grisham told a press conference: “We are deploying all available resources to control these fires. »

She said the scale of the fires was beyond local control and required immediate state intervention to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public.

More than 500 structures were damaged and the entire village of Ruidoso, which has a population of 7,000, was evacuated, the governor said. She said it's unclear how many homes were engulfed by the fast-moving flames, as extreme fire activity continues to prevent authorities from safely accessing the area to assess the damage.

“It’s too dangerous,” she said.

State Forester Laura McCarthy described the fires as “dangerous and fast-moving” in strong winds of up to 20 mph.

“Extreme fire behavior,” she said. McCarthy said a cold front is moving through the area and is expected to bring rain to the area by Wednesday or Thursday. But she added that it was “both bad news and good news” because while precipitation would be welcome, stronger winds would not.

The governor said his emergency declaration would unlock additional funds and resources to manage the crisis in Lincoln County and the Mescalero Apache Reservation. She said nearly 20,000 acres (8,100 hectares) were consumed, an area greater than 31 square miles (80 square kilometers).

“The fire is out of control, but I haven't heard of any injuries or deaths,” Ruidoso City Councilman Greg Cory said in a brief telephone interview from Clovis, New Mexico. where he, his wife and grandson arrived after driving about three hours. Monday evening from Ruidoso.

They were among hundreds of Ruidoso residents who fled for their lives through the crowded downtown streets of this usually pastoral vacation destination, as smoke darkened the evening sky and 100-foot flames climbed a ridge line.

Christy Hood, a real estate agent in Ruidoso, said Monday's evacuation order came so quickly that she and her husband, Richard, only had time to pick up their 11-year-old son and daughter 15 years old, as well as their two dogs. .

“We have no clothes or toothbrushes,” she said. “We really have nothing.”

Police were roaming the streets telling people to drop everything and leave, she said.

“As we were leaving, there were flames in front of me and beside me,” she said. “And all the animals were running – charging – trying to get out. »

They left Ruidoso, but heavy traffic turned what is normally a 15-minute drive into a harrowing two-hour ordeal.

“It looked like the sky was on fire. It was bright orange,” she said. “Honestly, it looked like the apocalypse. It was terrifying and sparks were falling on us.

On social media, Ruidoso officials did not mince their words: “LEAVE NOW: Do not try to gather your belongings or protect your home. Evacuate immediately.

Jacquie and Ernie Escajeda were at the church in Ruidoso, about 130 miles southeast of Albuquerque, on Monday when they heard about a fire in a neighboring community about 19 miles away. They said they didn't think much of it, but mid-morning smoke billowed over a mountain behind their house and the smell filled the air.

The couple started looking at their cell phones and turned on the radio to keep up to date. There was no “get ready” or “get ready” – it was just “go,” Ernie Escajeda said. They seized legal documents and other personal belongings and left.

“Within an hour, the police, firefighters, everyone was there blocking, barricading the roads leading to our area and telling everyone to leave,” he said. “Thank God we were ready.”

On Tuesday, the couple received a call from friends who are vacationing in Utah but have a house in Ruidoso that they were told was destroyed, Jacquie Escajeda said.

“They lost their home,” she said. “There's only one house standing in their entire little division that they live in, so a lot of structures have been lost. We don't know if we will have a home to go to.

The New Mexico Public Utility Company shut off power to part of the village due to the fire, which was estimated to be about 22 square miles (56 square kilometers) uncontained, forestry officials said Tuesday morning and the village.

Accountant Steve Jones said he and his wife were evacuated overnight as emergency crews arrived at their door and thick smoke filled the Ruidoso Valley, making breathing difficult.

“We had a 40 mph (55 kph) wind blowing this fire all the way up the ridge, we could literally see 100 foot (30 meter) flames,” said Jones, who moved to a campsite -because. “That’s why it consumed so much area.”

Amid highway closures, many evacuees had no choice but to flee east to the Great Plains and the city of Roswell, 75 miles (121 kilometers) away, where hotels and shelters were located. are quickly filled. A rural gas station along the evacuation route was overrun by people and cars.

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Sarah Brumfield, Associated Press writers in Washington, DC; Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Arizona; and Rio Yamat in Las Vegas; and Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, contributed to this report.