New Mexico village battered by wildfires in June now digging out from another round of flooding
A southern New Mexico village that was ravaged by wildfires in June and then battered off-and-on by flooding across burn scars is cleaning up again from another round of flash flooding
RUIDOSO, N.M. — A southern New Mexico village that was ravaged by wildfires in June and then battered off-and-on by flooding across burn scars was cleaning up Monday from another round of flash flooding in which a dozen people had to be rescued and many more were displaced from their homes.
“Hopefully by Thursday we get a little bit more of a break,” Scott Overpeck, the National Weather Service's warning coordination meteorologist in Albuquerque, said Monday.
About 100 National Guard troops remained in the village of Ruidoso, about 150 miles (241 kilometers) southeast of Albuquerque, on Monday after helping with rescues the day before. Video posted on social media showed rivers of water flowing down streets and forcing the closure of several roads.
With a flash flood watch in effect for parts of central and south-central New Mexico on Monday into Tuesday, the troops helped to distribute sandbags and with road repair, said Danielle Silva, director of communications for the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
About 45 people who had been displaced from their homes spent the night in a state-funded temporary shelter, she said.
There have been no immediate reports of deaths or serious injury from any of the flooding incidents in the village of 8,000. But Ruidoso city spokesperson Kerry Gladden said about 200 homes have been destroyed by flooding since the June wildfires damaged or destroyed an estimated 1,400 structures.
The FBI said Monday the fires were human-caused and two people may be to blame.
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