At least 89 people reported ‘unaccounted for’ from NM wildfires

A map showing parts of the village of Ruidoso where local full-time residents can return, and where search and rescue teams are still working. (Screenshot courtesy of Village of Ruidoso)

Update: Wednesday 26, 2024, 3:05 p.m. One person is unaccounted for following the South Fork and Salt fires and flooding. This is down from the 89 people reported Tuesday, according to a Village of Ruidoso spokesperson.

A Village of Ruidoso spokesperson just told me they are down to one person still unaccounted for following the South Fork and Salt fires and flooding that followed. Just yesterday the list was up to 89 people.

Parts of the village of Ruidoso reopened to full-time residents on Monday morning at 8 a.m. By Tuesday afternoon, about half of the 8,000 village residents who were evacuated from the South Fork and Salt fires had returned, according to the Lincoln County officials.

Authorities are leaving open the possibility that more could be found as they complete their search of the evacuated areas.

About 89 people were still unaccounted for, county emergency management specialist Michael Scales said. They aren’t all necessarily considered missing or dead, he said.

On Tuesday night, a Village of Ruidoso spokesperson said 11 people are reported missing.

In a social media post on Tuesday, the Village of Riudoso published an updated map showing parts of the village that were still closed off, called “exclusion zones,” which Scales explained are burned areas with many different crews working in them.

In those areas, there was massive damage and houses burned to the ground, Scales said. Authorities have cordoned off these places and are treating them as crime scenes until any evidence can be collected, he said.

On Monday, village officials referred in another social media post to “no entry/exclusion zones” as places where residents are not allowed and “are currently considered crime scenes.”

“The fact that we did have some individuals reported missing, and even as a practical standard, any time you have damage of this magnitude, you’re always taking cadaver dogs and forensic evidence technicians through there, to make sure we’re not missing something,” Scales said. “It’s a standard process with any kind of large disaster.”

State Police have confirmed two people have died as a result of the fires. Search and rescue teams have not yet found any more fatalities, Scales said. Those teams “have identified potential fatalities” that could be added to the tally, village officials wrote in a social media post.

“Because the dogs have not completely finished their searches, there’s always a possibility,” Scales said.

Ruidoso Village officials are asking, but not requiring, people who own vacation homes in Ruidoso to wait a few more days to return “to give residents time to get back to their properties and survey any needs or damages.”

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