New Mexico faces a long and potentially devastating wildfire season, state Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said on Saturday, as wildfires in the US southwest cause destruction and force people from their homes.
Hundreds of structures were lost in a growing number of wind-driven blazes across drought-stricken New Mexico, Lujan Grisham said.
More than 20 active wildfires were burning in at least 16 of the state’s 33 counties, in the wake of winds that gusted up to 145kph on Friday, Lujan told a briefing that was streamed online. “So half the state has a fire issue.”
Photo: AP
With so many fires burning this month, well before the normal May or June start of the wildfire season, “our risk season is incredibly and dangerously early,” Lujan Grisham said.
Wildfires have become a year-round threat in the US west given changing conditions that include earlier snowmelt and rain coming later in the fall, scientist have said.
The problems have been exacerbated by decades of fire suppression and poor management, along with a more than 20-year megadrought that studies link to human-caused climate change.
New Mexico as of Saturday had the most major wildfires burning of any state, although neighboring Arizona also had large fires that included one that burned 30 homes near Flagstaff on Tuesday.
Winds and temperatures in New Mexico diminished on Saturday, but remained strong enough to fan fires, and dozens of evacuation orders remained in place.
More than 200 structures have burned, Lujan Grisham said, not providing specifics on locations or the numbers of homes included in that count.
With fires still burning and charred areas too dangerous to enter, “it’s not safe for you or us to have a complete assessment to date,” Grisham said, adding that the number of lost structures would increase.
She appealed to residents to refrain from using fireworks or burning trash, and to evacuate when fire warnings are issued.
“You need to leave. The risks are too great,” she said.
The largest blazes were concentrated in northern New Mexico, where two major fires merged and numerous villages were threatened by advancing flames as residents heeded calls to leave.
Maggie Mulligan on Friday said that her dogs could sense the panic while she and her husband packed them up, agonized over having to leave horses behind and fled a fast-moving wildfire barreling toward their home.
“We don’t know what’s next,” she said. “We don’t know if we can go back to the horses.”
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