A state on fire — keep the help coming

Abriefing Tuesday from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on the brutal fires devastating New Mexico contained important information — especially in the comments, where people familiar with the conditions on the ground are demanding more assistance. And they’re right.

Firefighters are doing an incredible job, considering the relentless winds and dry conditions of the forest.

Five active fires are burning in six New Mexico counties, with the worst in Northern New Mexico.

More than 1,200 firefighters are battling the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fire, now the largest in the country, with 145,000-plus acres burned and only about 20 percent contained.

Because of the breadth of the fires, some 15,500 homes are evacuated across Northern New Mexico, and most people are staying with families and friends but hundreds are living in shelters or hotel rooms.

They say they need more help.

Folks with contacts in Mora wrote in the comments during the governor’s news conference about the need for more water, generators and food for volunteer firefighters — power is out and the need is urgent, they said.

Many stores in Las Vegas, N.M., are closed because of the fires and because so many employees are evacuated. Volunteers are bringing in food and other supplies, but the state needs to make sure there are necessities, such as gasoline, and food available so that people who aren’t evacuated won’t go without.

State cash vouchers have run out, said other evacuees. That means more need to be issued. Many people in Mora, San Miguel and Colfax counties are poor. They will need support both now and over the months.

The governor said that support is present and more is coming, with $29 million spent already and $2 million being spent daily to fight the fire and provide resources. Lujan Grisham’s efforts to obtain a presidential declaration are notable because such proclamations usually aren’t issued until after the incident ends.

In signing the request for the declaration, the governor said New Mexico would be the first state in the country to receive such a declaration while the fire is still burning.

Disaster aid will help mitigate fire risk and help people put their lives back together. Getting assistance out fast is the best response to this disaster, especially since weather is making the fire so hard to extinguish.

The governor also took time to explain the role of the National Guard in fighting the fires. More than 100 guardsmen and women are on the ground helping with evacuations, delivering meals, supporting work in evacuation shelters and meeting the needs of people facing great loss. Their work of dumping water on fires is particularly appreciated.

The governor made clear she wants to challenge the federal government on its rules for prescribed burns, rewriting them to change notice requirements and rules.

“This isn’t our first situation where the federal government put us in real harm’s way,” she said. “We cannot get ahead of these fires without taking some of the fuel out of our forests and wilderness areas.

“Prescribed burning has to be part of that effort,” Lujan Grisham said. “Prescribed burning in April and during the windy season does not have to be part of that equation.”

Never again, was her final message. That means removing fuel from forests, restoring watersheds and restricting burns so winds are less likely to fuel a conflagration.

That’s for the future — right now, the governor is concentrated on getting the fire out and getting the people the help they need. Keep it up, and listen to the folks demanding more and sharing where help is most needed.