The RV park where he lived was limited to “metal frame rails and steel wheels,” said Siddens, who ran the site. “I had about 10 people displaced. They lost their homes and everything, including my mother,” he said. The fire has destroyed more than 200 homes and killed two people since it broke out on Tuesday near the village of Ruidoso, a holiday destination that attracts thousands of tourists and horse racing enthusiasts every summer. A fire broke out along a hillside in the village of Ruidoso, NM, on Wednesday, April 13, 2022. Officials say a fire has burned about 150 structures, including homes, in Ruidoso, New Mexico. (Alexander Meditz via AP) Alexander Meditz / AP Hundreds of houses and summer cabins are scattered on the surrounding hillsides. The RV park run by Sidens is near the spot where an elderly couple was found dead this week outside their charred home. Elsewhere in the United States, crews battled major wildfires this week in Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado, where a new wildfire forced evacuations Friday along the Rocky Mountain east front near Lyon, about 18 miles north. Boulder. This fire was burning in the Blue Mountains near the Larimer-Boulder County line about 20 miles southeast of Estes Park, at the eastern entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. In New Mexico, power was restored to all but a few hundred customers, but evacuation orders for about 5,000 people remained in effect. Donations came from surrounding communities very familiar with how devastating fires can be. A decade ago, a fire engulfed part of the village of Ruidoso, setting the holiday spot on the map with the most devastating fire in New Mexico history, when more than 240 homes burned and nearly 70 square miles of forest were engulfed in flames. On Friday, Mayor Lynn Crawford once again gathered disgruntled residents as firefighters tried to prevent the blazing flames from running back into the village. He said the response from their neighbors was astonishing. “So we have plenty of food, we have a lot of clothes, things like that, but we still appreciate and need your prayers and thoughts,” the mayor said during a briefing. “Again, our heart goes out to the family of the deceased, to those who lost their homes.” Authorities have not yet released the names of the couple who died. Their bodies were found after anxious family members contacted police, saying the couple had planned to evacuate on Tuesday when the fire broke out, but were ignored later that day. This photo provided by the Village of Ruidoso shows a firefighter dropping a fire retardant in the mountains near the village of Ruidoso, NM, on Wednesday, April 13, 2022. Officials say a fire has burned about 150 structures, including homes in Ruidoso, New Mexico. (Kerry Gladden / Village of Ruidoso via AP) Kerry Gladden / AP While many older residents call Ruidoso their home all year round, the population of about 8,000 increases to about 25,000 during the summer months as Texans and New Mexicans seek refuge in warmer climates. Fans also flock to the Ruidoso Downs, home to one of the sport’s richest fourth horse races. The racing season was expected to start on May 27 and the horses boarding there are not in any danger as firefighters use the facility as a stadium. Part-time residents have been using social media in recent days, begging fire officials for updates on some neighborhoods, hoping their family cabins were not among those damaged or destroyed. The telephone lines were lit on Friday afternoon as villagers called for more smoke. Fire Information Officer Mike DeFries said this was due to explosions inside the fire as the flames found cases of unburned fuel. Although the fire did not make any run on the lines created by the crews, he said it was still a difficult day for firefighters due to the single-digit humidity, higher temperatures and wind. Authorities reiterated that it was still too early to start letting people in to see the damage. They asked for patience as the fire brigade extinguished the hot spots and tried to build a stronger perimeter around the fire. “It’s still an active fire area in there and it’s not a safe place,” DeFries said. “It will take patience. At the same time, every step we take is designed to put out this fire and bring people back home as soon as possible.” New Mexico authorities say they suspect the fire, which has burned more than 9.5 square miles (24 square kilometers) of forest and grass, was caused by a damaged power cord and the search continued Friday. 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.
