Authorities encouraged by shifting winds but blaze feeding on drought-parched landscape expected to keep growing
Authorities were encouraged by a forecast for Tuesday of improving humidity and shifting winds. But the blaze was expected to keep growing, putting it on track to possibly be one of the largest and most destructive in state history.
When her daughter showed up to take her to Albuquerque on Monday, fire crews were cutting down trees, raking pine needles and spraying water on properties in the area near her home. She grabbed clothes, photos and essential documents. Wildfires have become a year-round threat in the drought-stricken US west, moving faster and burning hotter than ever, scientists and fire experts say. In the last five years, California has experienced the eight largest wildfires in state history, while Colorado saw a destructive blaze tear through suburban neighborhoods last December.
Crews got a bit of a break on Monday afternoon as the wind diminished and helicopters were able to make water drops in key locations. But flames running along the ridges above town could be seen from the discount store, an empty baseball field and other vantage points. The 197 patients at the Behavioral Health Institute were being sent to other facilities, with some transported in secured units and others escorted by police.
Another New Mexico wildfire in the mountains near Los Alamos National Laboratory also prompted evacuations over the weekend and other communities were told to get ready to evacuate if conditions worsen. That blaze has reached the burn scars of wildfires that blackened the region a decade ago when New Mexico had one of its worst and most destructive seasons.
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