RUIDOSO, N.M. (KRQE) – Damage from the McBride Fire has already surpassed the Three Rivers Fire in the Lincoln National Forest last year. Now on day four of the fire, flames have moved north headed to toward the airport. Two people have died and the fire has burned 6,167 acres and is 0% contained.
Ruidoso Fire Chief Joe Kasbuboski spoke on the first moments his fire crews learned a fire had erupted in town. “Before that we had the wind storm and a lot of power lines down so we were all out in the field taking care of that when the fire broke out once the fire broke out we refocused all of our firefighters on the fire.”
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Chief Kasuboski said the first couple days of the fire, his crews worked around the clock with no sleep, until the type one team arrived to offer some help, “14 most of them were we in their trucks trying to catch a nap if they could during the fire most of the time they were up 24 hours 48 hours without any sleep.”
All evacuation orders are still in place and no one has been allowed back to their homes. PNM said crews have restored all power to all but about 600 customers in Ruidoso.
