Village of Ruidoso residents allowed to return as wildfires continue

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Full-time residents were allowed back into the Village of Ruidoso Monday morning, June 24, as the wildfires reached slight containment.

The South Fork Fire is estimated at 17,551 acres with 37 percent containment. The Salt Fire is estimated at 7,816 acres with 7 percent containment, the New Mexico Forestry Division said Monday morning.

Some full-time residents in Lincoln County were allowed to return to their homes on Saturday night, June 22, while others were allowed to return home on Sunday morning, June 23.

Both Lincoln County and the Village of Ruidoso stressed the need for people with second homes and tourists to remain clear of the area to allow full-time residents to get back home and assess their situations.

The Forestry Division says those traveling near the fires should continue taking extra precautions as emergency vehicles, engines, and equipment continue to travel and work along roadways.

"While fire behavior has reduced to smoldering and creeping in heavy duff and dead/down fuels, fire activity and smoke can increase in interior pockets of unburned fuel as warmer weather moves into the region," the Forestry Division said.

The Village of Ruidoso confirmed that two people have died as a result of the fires. The Village had initially reported three fatalities on its Facebook page but changed the total to two.

With permanent residents being allowed to return to the village, there will be some areas that are considered “no entry/exclusion zones” that will not be accessible to residents because they are considered crime scenes, the Village said on its Facebook page.

The Village also says that search-and-rescue teams have identified potential fatalities that could add to the number of deaths. These areas will also be secured by officers.

The FBI's Albuquerque Field Office announced this past Saturday that it's offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for starting the fires.

The Forestry Division says there are currently over 1,000 personnel assisting with the fires with 19 crews, eight helicopters, 71 engines, 14 bulldozers, and 23 water tenders.

"Widespread precipitation caused localized flooding and limited firefighter access to areas across the South Fork and Salt fires on Sunday. Today, crews will focus on mop-up, clearing snags, hazard tree operations, and securing the perimeter where conditions allow. Incident personnel will also continue structural assessments in neighborhoods and the fire area," the Forestry Division said Monday.

Evacuations and closure status are changing. Visit www.lincolncountynm.gov and www.ruidoso-nm.gov/south-fork-fire for the latest information. Contact the Lincoln County Emergency Operations Center at (575) 258-6900 if you have questions.

A South Fork Fire Emergency Closure Order was issued last week for national forest lands within the Smokey Bear Ranger District. The identified areas, roads, and trails are closed to the public.

A temporary flight restriction is also in place over the fire area. This prohibits any and all drone use by the public.

Tribal members who have been displaced outside of the Mescalero Apache Reservation can contact the Tribe's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to help them get back to the reservation.

Those who are stranded out of town at other evacuation sites can call the EOC at 575-464-9214 for more details. 

Residents returning who need food, water, personal hygiene items, or toiletries can receive these items at the following distribution locations:

• First Baptist Church - 270 Country Club Drive Ruidoso, NM
• Lincoln County Fairgrounds - 101 5th Street Capitan, NM

Residents who have been displaced and need shelter and any items listed above can go to White Mountain Sports Complex located at 687 Hull Road Ruidoso, NM. A FEMA Representative and Red Cross representatives will be on-site at the White Mountain Sports Complex to assist.

River Crossing Ministries located at 1950 Sudderth Drive Ruidoso, NM, will be operating as a distribution center on Tuesday, June 26.

Keep in mind that the distribution centers will not be accepting donations. We will update this list as more distribution centers become operational.

The incident management team held a community meeting on its Facebook page this past Sunday. The meeting included representatives from Lincoln County, Ruidoso Police Department, NM State Police, Red Cross, PNM, Windstream, Mescalero Apache Telephone, Tri-State Electric, and Otero County Electric Cooperative. To watch that meeting, click here: South Fork and Salt Fires Community Meeting.

The Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) says it's working to restore power to areas where the wildfires destroyed wires, poles, and distribution lines.

"At its peak, 4,104 of the 18,940 customer homes and businesses were without power in PNM’s Ruidoso service territory. Power has been restored to 1,204 of those customers. Heading into Monday morning, 2,900 customers remain without power," PNM said.

PNM says it's working with local, state, and federal incident response teams by "tactically de-energizing and reconnecting portions of the grid at the request of first responders to allow those teams to safely build and hold fire lines."

PNM says around 1,500 of 10,000 power poles have been destroyed or damaged by the wildfires.

PNM also says it stopped billing and automatic drafting of payments for customers impacted by the wildfires.

For more information on PNM or power outages, click here: Public Service Company of New Mexico's website.