South Fork Fire, Salt Fire spread slows in Ruidoso, NM, evacuations remain in effect

The two wildfires that have ravaged thousands of acres around Ruidoso, New Mexico, over the last several days are dialing down thanks to rainy weather.

During a news conference Thursday, June 20, in Alamogordo, New Mexico, Fire Behavior Analyst Arthur Gonzales reported that the heavy precipitation that hit the area Wednesday, accompanied by a cloak of cloud cover, "really took the momentum out of this fire."

With similar conditions expected over the next few days, Gonzales expects "very little spread."

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Still, crews are on the ground in both areas with a tough job ahead — information scrolled during the news conference showed nearly 1,000 personnel working in both areas, which have already seen around 24,000 acres burned and still 0% containment.

However, Dave Gesser, incident commander for Southwest Area Incident Management Team #5, reported that he expects containment to ramp up in the coming days as wet weather makes it possible for fire crews to progress in quelling the blazes.

On the north end of the South Fork Fire, hotshot crews are "making really good progress," reported Brandon Glenn, operations section chief for Team #5; moving toward Eagle Creek and Cedar Creek, crews are tamping out hotspots around structures.

New Mexico wildfire map: Track growing fires as Ruidoso area residents forced to evacuate

As for the Salt Fire, Glenn reported that parts of the area are "actually looking really good," with areas west of Highway 70 "really secure," and more teams are branching out to scout the northeast corner of the fire.

The same moisture that has assisted teams today is likely to accelerate their efforts in the coming days as forecasts are calling for more precipitation, reported Incident Meteorologist Tom Bird.

While Bird quickly pointed out that heavy rain could be just as disastrous, causing floods and further damage to property and resources, he noted that he expects "moderated fire weather going forward," which "works to our benefit."

Residents urged not to return to evacuated areas

Lincoln County Undersheriff Geraldine Martinez reported that evacuation orders are currently in place in the areas around the fires and sought to assure residents that her office, along with other law enforcement agencies, was working to protect property in the evacuated areas.

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During Thursday's news conference, some residents expressed concerns over looting in the area — while Martinez noted that some people have been found in evacuated areas where they should not have been, there have been no accounts of mass looting.

"Thus far, it's been manageable," she said, urging residents not to return to the evacuated areas. "But ... the more people that come in that we have to chase down in a sense, it makes it harder for us to do that."

Currently, there's no end in sight for the evacuation orders. When conditions improve further, those orders will be lifted on a rolling basis as fire crews, in collaboration with other law enforcement agencies and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, determine each area is safe.

Weakened trees, downed power lines and exposed gas lines are potentially deadly hazards following wildfires.

Ruidoso and Ruidoso Downs remain under evacuation orders.

What caused Ruidoso fires?

An investigation into the cause of the fires is underway by authorities, Gesser said. The cause of the fires remains unknown.

"The fires are still undetermined," Gesser said. "It's under investigation. I just wanted to let folks know that the cause of this is still undetermined. We do have folks working in there and looking into that as well."

FBI officials have asked anyone with information on the cause of the fires to contact the agency by calling 1-800-225-5324 or online at tips.fbi.gov.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Authorities expect slowdown in South Fork Fire, Salt Fire in Ruidoso