At least one person has succumbed to the wildfires in New Mexico which have also led to the expulsion of thousands of people, destroying hundreds of structures, according to a report by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s office on Wednesday.
As at Tuesday evening, about 1,400 homes and other structures were already destroyed and this prompted the evacuation of the whole New Mexico village of Ruidoso boasting a population 7,000.
The governor had told news reporters on Tuesday that about two individuals were injured in the wildfires.
This led the governor to declare a state of emergency in the Lincoln County and the Mescalero Apache Reservation due to the two wildfires happening in South Fork Fire and Salt Fire.
What They’re Saying
A spokesperson of the governor’s office had told the media. “We don’t have any additional details. Only one fatality as a result of the fire.”
On the other hand, an evacuee from Ruidoso, Karen Sandoval, had informed KOB 4 media station saying,
“It was really scary with the ashes coming down. Maybe it was like snow falling down, it was pretty bad. It was scary.”
Weather forecasters have predicted some rain later this week in New Mexico.
Lately, U.S. cities have been breaking decades-old temperature records. This week in particular, a heatwave stretched from central to eastern portions of the country and the National Weather Service has warned that this could quickly turn into a deadly weather event.