Residents of Ruidoso, New Mexico in the United States were ordered to leave the area immediately on Monday due to a wildfire that was discovered nearby that morning and by the end of the day had spread to more than 2,000 hectares, NBC News reports, UNN writes.
Details
"Immediate mandatory evacuation of Ruidoso village - leave now!!!" the local government posted in big letters on its Facebook page shortly before 19:00 local time, the newspaper writes.
The South Fork Fire was discovered around 9 a.m. on Monday on the Mescalero Reservation west of the town of more than 7,000 people, and by 11:30 p.m., according to the New Mexico Forestry Division, it had grown to about 2,125 hectares.
"The fire growth was rapid and was accompanied by extreme fire behavior," the unit said. By Monday evening, the fire was 0% contained.
Several evacuation orders were issued, with residents ordered to leave the settlement immediately and warned against attempts to collect valuables or protect their property.
On Tuesday morning, the Red Cross opened a shelter for those fleeing their homes. Two highways leading to the city were blocked.
As of Monday evening, there were no reports of fatalities. Government websites about the event listed the number of buildings lost as unknown, but many buildings were under threat.
According to Ruidoso authorities, hot ash from the fire was falling in Alto, a community north of Ruidoso. Part of the highway near the reservation was closed, the report said.
On its website, the reservation reported that Mescalero reservation staff went from house to house to order people in the affected areas to leave the area immediately.
The Mescalero Apache tribe announced that it was opening an evacuation center.
Electricity supplier PNM cut off power to part of Ruidoso at the request of emergency services, the city said.
Images from a webcam in the center of Ruidoso showed on Monday evening that the sky behind the town was glowing red. By Tuesday morning, the glow was no longer visible, but the city was enveloped in thick smoke.
Ruidoso, Alto and the reservation are located in the Sierra Blanca mountain range, southeast of Albuquerque.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The fire broke out as much of the American Southwest, including parts of New Mexico, was warned of a "red" fire risk alert due to very dry air and winds.
In Calaveras County, California, east of Stockton, a wildfire that covered an area of about 770 hectares also prompted emergency evacuations on Monday.
The fire left about 5000 people without electricity.
According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the so-called Aero Fire broke out in Copperopolis around 15:20 local time.
Небезпечна хвиля спеки накриє Середній Захід та Північний Схід у США цього тижня17.06.24, 17:25