New Mexico village seeks prayers as wildfire rages
Over 200 homes have already been burned
With towering pine trees and cool mountain breezes, a pocket of southern New Mexico draws thousands of tourists and horse racing fans every summer. It’s also a community that knows how devastating wildfire can be.
It was a decade ago that fire ripped through part of the village of Ruidoso, putting the vacation spot on the map with the most destructive wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history when more than 240 homes burned and nearly 70 square miles of forest were blackened by a lightning-sparked blaze.
Now, Mayor Lynn Crawford is rallying heartbroken residents once again as firefighters on Friday tried to keep windwhipped flames from making another run at the village and the hundreds of homes and summer cabins that dot the surrounding mountainsides.
More than 200 homes already have burned and an elderly couple was found dead outside their charred residence.
Crawford said the village is overflowing with donations from surrounding communities.
“So we have plenty of food, we have plenty of clothes, those kinds of things but we still appreciate and need your prayers and your thoughts,” the mayor said during a briefing. “Again, our hearts go out to the family of the deceased, to those that have lost their homes.”
Authorities have yet to release the names of the couple who died. Their bodies were found after worried family members contacted police, saying the couple had planned to evacuate Tuesday when the fire exploded but were unaccounted for later that day.
While many older residents call Ruidoso home year round, the population of about 8,000 people expands to about 25,000 during the summer months as Texans and New Mexicans from hotter climates come seeking respite. Horse races at the Ruidoso Downs also draw crowds, as it’s home to one of the sport’s richest quarter-horse competitions. The racing season was expected to start May 27, and horses that board there aren’t in any danger as fire officials use the facility as a staging ground.
Part-time residents have taken to social media over the last few days, pleading with fire officials for updates on certain neighborhoods, hoping their family cabins weren’t among those damaged or destroyed.
Authorities said Friday evacuations for close to 5,000 people remain in place and that it was too early to start letting people in to see the damage. They asked for patience as fire crews continued to put out hot spots in the burned neighborhoods and tried to build a stronger perimeter around the blaze.
Incident commander Dave Bales said crews were bracing for stronger winds Friday after having a successful day on Thursday. Helicopters were making water drops and more engines and firefighters were arriving from elsewhere to help with the effort.
New Mexico authorities said they suspect the fire, which has torched more than 9.5 square miles of forest and grass, was sparked by a downed power line and the investigation continued Friday.