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New Mexico Forest fires forced the evacuation of thousands of residents.
A McBride fire that broke out near the village of Ruidoso on Tuesday destroyed more than 200 homes and killed two people.
An elderly couple, whom family members said they planned to evacuate, were found dead last week near their burned-out home after family members contacted police. Authorities have not yet released their names.
NEW MEXICO WILDFIRE KILLS 2, CONTINUES TO BUILD IN THE WEST
According to InciWebthe fire burned more than 6,000 acres and remains 0% under control.
While power was restored for all but a few hundred customers, evacuation orders for nearly 5,000 people remained in force.
Although the fire did not spread along the lines established by the crews, the conditions were warm, windy and dry.
The hotlines lit up on Friday afternoon when people in the village called to report more smoke.
Firefighter Mike DeFries said it was due to a fire inside the blaze as the flames found pockets of unburned fuel.
Officials asked for patience as firefighters worked to extinguish the hotspots.
WILD FIRE IN NEBRASKA, COVER 30,000 ACRES STILL BURNING
“There’s still an active fire zone and it’s not a safe place,” DeFries said. “It will take patience. At the same time, every step we take is designed to put out this fire and bring people home as soon as possible. “
“We know that people going through this devastating and emotional time want to pack up and assess the damage to their homes,” said Kelly Hamilton, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, in a statement on Saturday. New Mexico (DHSEM). “Please be patient. These areas are too dangerous and the last thing we want is for someone to be seriously injured. Fires can change direction quickly, burned root systems can cause trees to fall, and homes can be dangerous to enter. “
Ruidoso, where authorities declared a state of emergency, was hit by one of the most devastating forest fires in the state’s history in 2012.
The fire is believed to have been caused by a damaged power line and the investigation into the case continued on Friday.
In addition, hotter and drier weather and more than 20 years of man-made drought climate change have contributed to an increase in the number of acres burned by forest fires.
Crews are battling major wildfires in Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado, where a new fire forced an evacuation Friday north of Boulder.
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More than 1,400 firefighters have been assigned to incidents in the south, southwest and Rocky Mountains, according to National Interdepartmental Fire Center.
The agency said Friday that there are 10 unlimited major fires burning in five states.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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