New Mexico wildfires force hundreds to evacuate

About 300 structures are threatened in Cimarron, New Mexico, where officials issued a mandatory evacuation as wildfires, stoked by low humidity and high temperatures, raged in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado.

The two fires, about 250 miles (400 km) apart in the drought-parched Four Corners region of the southwestern United States, have consumed nearly 32,000 acres (12,000 hectares) between them, officials said.

The larger of the two, the so-called Ute Park Fire in Colfax County, New Mexico, was zero percent contained after scorching some 30,000 acres by Saturday, June 2, evening near Cimarron.

The town of about 1,100 people lies just northeast of the Santa Fe National Forest, which was indefinitely closed to the public in a rare measure prompted by the heightened fire risk from prolonged drought.

The National Weather Service predicts that rainfall will hit the region, bringing relief to the firefighters battling wild blazes in the region.

(Source: Reuters)

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk