Ruidoso Fire Believed 'Intentional'

Cloudcroft Mayor says Cloudcroft stands by to help Ruidoso however possible and is working to prepare the Village if ever such an event occurs here.

Mayor Craig Turner called the Cloudcroft Reader this afternoon to share some updated news about the scary fire around Ruidoso.

The Mayor said it is his understanding that the fire was "intentional.” 

"We're on a steady line of communication," said Mayor Turner, referring to the collaboration between himself, Lynn Crawford (the Mayor of Ruidoso), Chief Roger Schoolcraft, and the trustees. "We've offered all of our resources, but things are so bad over there right now that they're not sure what they need."

The fire has severely impacted Ruidoso, with communication being a significant issue.

"Their communication over there is not as good as it used to be," Mayor Turner explained. "The Wi-Fi is down, and they're having a hard time. They tried to do a Zoom call today, but it was breaking up badly."

Despite these challenges, Cloudcroft is ready to assist.

"We are very vigilant here at Cloudcroft, and we've offered up all of our resources to help them," he said, without "overextending ourselves so that if we have a fire here, we can protect ourselves. "

The fire has caused significant destruction in Ruidoso, with over 500 structures burned and some people, including children, missing.

"They're going door to door right now trying to find those children," he reported. "Hopefully, they ended up in Roswell with a family friend or a neighbor, or they're hunkered down somewhere with someone."

Amid this crisis, Mayor Turner is preparing to meet with Congressman Gabe Vazquez to discuss broader forest management and fire prevention issues.

"One of the things I'm going to share with him is that we need the government to lift all of the constraints on us to prevent us from being able to clean our forest and protect ourselves," he said. "All of the regulations that prevent us from cleaning because of the concern of us cutting down healthy trees, it's handcuffing us to protect ourselves."

This meeting underscores the ongoing efforts to improve fire preparedness in Cloudcroft.

"We're working on that. (Fire Chief) Erich Wuersching has been asking the previous administration, trustees, and even the police department for years to get together and work together. Erich does have a plan of action with EMS, but it's been like pulling teeth."

Despite the immediate focus on aiding Ruidoso, Mayor Turner emphasized that fire prevention in Cloudcroft remains a top priority.

"Fire still is my biggest concern for our village because, well, I don't have to say why. Once Erich and I can formulate a workshop and get things rolling, we will, without a doubt, make sure the village is clear on what to do in the case of fire."

In closing, Mayor Turner reassured that Cloudcroft was ready and willing to assist Ruidoso.

"We've offered our resources to Ruidoso in any way we can. They have not taken us up on anything because they are getting plenty of help. But if anything changes where they ask us to open up the high school, send firefighters over, or anything, I'll let you know."