Two fast-moving wildfires in Southern New Mexico that have killed two people, prompted the evacuation of thousands of people and scorched more than 23,000 acres continued to burn out of control on Wednesday, officials said, and it was unclear when firefighters might gain some control.
The wildfires, named the South Fork and Salt fires, began earlier this week amid sweltering temperatures, and shifts in the weather on Wednesday may further complicate efforts to contain them. The South Fork fire, the larger of the two wildfires, has burned more than 16,000 acres and destroyed 1,400 structures, according to the Southwest Area Incident Management Team.
Two people have died, the New Mexico police said in a statement on Wednesday. Both bodies were found on Tuesday in or near the village of Ruidoso, N.M., which is between the two fires. One victim, whom the police identified as Patrick Pearson, 60, was found dead on the side of a road near a motel, with numerous burns, the statement said. The other victim, who was found in the driver’s seat of a burned vehicle on a road, was not immediately identified.
Temperatures reached the upper 80s and 90s in Southern New Mexico on Wednesday. There was a chance of showers and thunderstorms beginning in the afternoon, the National Weather Service said. But expected winds of 15 miles an hour or more might cause the fire to spread.
The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for Lincoln County on Wednesday afternoon.
The warning prompted emergency management officials in Ruidoso to announce that they were “pulling all operations” from certain areas near the fire. “As the units and crews leave these areas,” the officials said on social media, “they will be evacuating anyone that is still in the area to higher ground.”
Firefighters in air tankers and helicopters dropped water and retardant on the flames, while firefighters on the ground constructed firelines. “Changing wind direction and potential for afternoon thunderstorms could create challenging conditions for firefighters in the air and on the ground,” Southwest Area Incident Management Team said in a statement on Wednesday.
The Red Cross said on Wednesday that more than 528 people had sought refuge at nine emergency shelters, and that “hundreds of meals and snacks” have been provided to them.
The organization said it was also “providing emotional and spiritual support, relief supplies and health services, such as replacing eyeglasses and medications,” and that more disaster workers were on the way, including “several tractor-trailers filled with relief supplies.”
At a news conference on Tuesday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico emphasized how dangerous the wildfires had become in a short time.
“We have two devastating, enormous fires,” she said. “When I say enormous, it means they are getting more and more complicated to address.”
The expected combination of rain and wind on Wednesday was both good news and bad news, Laura McCarthy, a New Mexico state forester, said at the same news conference. “It also means that this fire is going to be dynamic, at least until we see what rainfall amounts materialize,” she said, adding that the increasing winds might also put homes in danger.
Governor Lujan Grisham, who declared a state of emergency in Lincoln County and the Mescalero Apache Reservation because of the fires, called the situation “very serious,” adding that travel around the southern region of the state was not only discouraged but not possible because of road closings.
By Tuesday evening, the wildfires were presenting a clear threat to residents in Southern New Mexico, particularly the village of Ruidoso, which is between the two fires.
The larger wildfire, the South Fork fire, was discovered around 9 a.m. Monday in the Mescalero Apache tribal area. It grew rapidly, and was still zero percent contained on Wednesday, officials said.
The second wildfire, the Salt fire, was discovered a few miles away on Monday afternoon and has since burned more than 7,000 acres of tribal land in mostly inaccessible mountain terrain.
The state said that along with grass, the main trees burning in the fires were pines and junipers.
About 8,000 people had been evacuated from Ruidoso and the surrounding area by Tuesday evening, the New Mexico State Forestry Division said.
At the news conference, Governor Lujan Grisham was asked if she was aware of any people trapped or unaccounted for in the mass dash for safety.
“I don’t have an accurate number, I don’t know that anyone does,” she said. “Again, if you believe that you’ve got a loved one that is in jeopardy, we want to know about it, we want to do everything we can.”
Victor Mather, Aimee Ortiz and Yan Zhuang contributed reporting.
