The largest wildfire in state history has torn through centuries-old rural communities, displacing thousands
Last modified on Wed 18 May 2022 07.02 BSTvillage of Las Dispensas were a family touchstone. The couple built the house themselves in 2015 and fashioned the steps out of concrete blocks. Every year they photographed their daughter, Rayyah, on them - as Rayyah grew, the steps stayed the same.The family evacuated on 11 April as a rapidly growing blaze on the nearby mountain of Hermit Peak roared toward their home, driven by winds gusting up to 70 miles per hour.
Mahan is an ecologist who monitors forest health and was well aware of the threat of wildfire when she and her husband chose to build next to the Santa Fe national forest in the foothills of the scenic Sangre de Cristo mountains. The region is in a ponderosa pine ecosystem, like much of the upland south-west, and is especially vulnerable to wildfire in what has become the worst drought in 1,200 years.
The mostly unincorporated, centuries-old communities are nestled in stream-cut valleys and mountain foothills surrounded by national forest. Many residents are older, have lived their entire lives in the region, and take pride in their culture of self-sufficiency and connection to the land. Lyon says it has been hard to convince many of them to leave their homes amid the fire threat.
Ruben Garcia, 85, has been living at a hotel in Las Vegas, New Mexico, since he was evacuated from his home more than a month ago. He is from the village of Rociada, 27 miles north-west of Las Vegas, and lives on 100 acres that have been in his family for multiple generations. Garcia’s house was spared by the fire but barns and farm equipment were destroyed. Rociada remains under mandatory evacuation while crews continue to put out wind-whipped spot fires.
Garcia’s son Michael, who lives in Denver, says going to the shelter for a hot meal and conversation with fellow evacuees is currently the one bright spot in his father’s life. “He and Leo are there every day,” says Michael. “They like to visit with people they know who are also displaced.” Lopez and about 50 other shelter volunteers have been working 12 hours a day every day for more than a month. Many are evacuees themselves and some, like Andrew Vigil, have lost everything in the fire.
Stoney Haver, Samantha Haver, and Brandy Brogan in Las Vegas. Their family home was burnt to the ground. Samantha’s husband, Buzzard, not pictured, is a disabled veteran who requires a wheelchair and oxygen. All of his medical supplies burned in the fire.
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