New Mexico continues battling flames amid flash floods

Both the South Fork and Salt fires continue burning across central New Mexico with zero percent containment, the state’s forestry division said Friday. Severe storms blew into the area and have made containment efforts surprisingly more difficult. The heavy rain and golf-ball-sized hail began over the fires and triggered major flooding. Areas of land with burn marks are at severe risk of flash flooding and forest debris has already begun washing into residential areas. Footage taken by a storm chaser appeared to show a New Mexico State Road 42 in Willard washed out from the deluge. Emergency responders have already conducted at least three flood rescues, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said Wednesday.

The fires ignited on Monday and have since scorched over 23,000 acres in total. Lujan Grisham issued a state of emergency for areas surrounding the fires on Tuesday, with about 8,000 people evacuating the area. The fires have killed at least two people and destroyed about 1,400 structures, hundreds of which were personal homes, Lujan Grisham said. President Joe Biden issued a disaster declaration for areas of New Mexico on Thursday which allows the state more resources from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also sent emergency resources to New Mexico to aid in fire response and logistics, according to a statement from Abbot’s office.

How is containment still at zero? Over 800 personnel were on the ground working 24 hours a day to secure a perimeter around the flames, New Mexico officials said at a Thursday night press conference. Winds from the storms were stalling containment efforts but citizens should expect progress in the next couple of days, Incident Commander Dave Gessar said. Authorities have not confirmed how the fires were sparked. The FBI is assisting state, local, and tribal law enforcement to investigate the fire’s origin, FBI Albuquerque Division spokeswoman Margot Cravens told WORLD.

Dig deeper: Read Lynde Langdon’s report for more on the dangers of flooding on wildfire-scorched land.