The crews worked on Thursday to restore electricity in parts of the village. The power outage has also affected the servers, the email system and the school district website. Firefighters used a break in what was a steady stream of relentless gusts to advance against the deadly fire. The couple’s remains were found near their home on Wednesday afternoon, after family members informed Ruidoso police that the two had tried to evacuate but were missing. Authorities were trying to confirm the identities of the two men. The fire had spread to a more densely populated area of Ruidoso, causing more evacuations, about 5,000 people. Lincoln National Park spokeswoman Laura Rampon cut short the fire report Wednesday to tell people to get in their cars and leave after the flames hit a road where crews were trying to hold the line. “We had students who lost their homes. “We have to support them on Tuesday,” said Sarah Ames Brown, a high school English teacher who was with the students as they drove away, with the flames visible in the woods as they walked away. During the night, crews prevented the flames from pushing further into the village, and Rabon said progress continued on Thursday as helicopters dropped water and ground crews secured lines on the east and south sides. Hotspots were also extinguished in neighborhoods where the blaze broke out earlier this week. The fire burned about 9 square miles (23 square kilometers) of forest and grass, and strong winds that hit the area have left behind fallen trees and power lines falling. Firefighters and meteorologists warned that persistent dry and stormy conditions had triggered another day of red-flag warnings for the eastern third of New Mexico and other parts of the Midwest. Incident Commander Dave Bales said the strategy was “attack as much as we could,” noting that winds were expected to intensify again on Friday. “We try to keep this fire as small as possible, especially because it is in the community,” he said. “We have lost a lot of construction, so our crews are right there in front of the fire and they are going as fast as possible.” Six new wildfires were reported Wednesday: three in Texas, two in Colorado and one in Oklahoma. In all, wildlife firefighters and support staff were trying to contain 11 large wildfires that had engulfed more than 40 square miles (103 square kilometers) in five states. The National Fire Department said Thursday that since the beginning of the year, 18,550 fires have burned about 1,250 square miles (3,237 square kilometers). This is well above the decade-long average of 12,290 wildfires and 835 square miles (2162.64 square miles) burned. Warmer and drier weather combined with decades of firefighting have helped increase the number of acres burned by the fires, say firefighters. The problem is exacerbated by a 20-year-long drought in the West that studies have linked to man-made climate change. Elsewhere in New Mexico, fires were burning northwest of Ruidoso, along the Rio Grande south of the Albuquerque, in mountains northwest of the Las Vegas community, and in meadows along the Pecos River near Roswell.
Montoya Bryan reported from Albuquerque, New Mexico and Davenport from Phoenix.
Cedar Attanasio contributed to the report from Santa Fe. Attanasio is a member of the Associated Press / Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a non-profit national service program that places reporters in local newsrooms to cover hidden issues.
