Fires in the United States leave one dead and more than eight thousand homeless

The forest fires that hit the state of New Mexico, in the United States of America (USA), have already left one person dead and more than 8 thousand people homeless. The information was released by the office of the state governor, Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham.

According to the government, the structures of buildings close to the regions affected by the fires are already compromised.

_{Fire in New Mexico covers the sky (Photo: reproduction/Rebecca Denis/CNN)}

Evacuated cities

According to official information, the two fires, South Fork Fire and Salt Fire, have already caused entire cities to be evacuated, in addition to other cities completely destroyed by fire.

The governor also took advantage of the conversation with reporters to announce a state of calamity in some regions of the state.

South Fork Fire has not yet managed to have even a portion of its area contained, and already covers more than 6000 hectares, which is equivalent to more than 5 thousand football stadiums. Salt Fire, in turn, affects a region corresponding to 2600 hectares of land.

Current measures aim to maintain control of the situation and monitor the spread of the flames, in case it is necessary to evacuate more people or mobilize new fire teams.

Climate changes

The fires in New Mexico are caused by the drought that has been plaguing the region. Over the last year, New Mexico has been going through the so-called “Great Drought”, which made the local vegetation even drier and more flammable, making it easier for fires to spread. However, the forecast of rain in the coming days brings hope to the local population, as it could help control the hitherto unstoppable fire.

The fire could continue to burn, however, if the measures proposed by world governments to combat global warming are not put into practice as quickly as possible, as they would help avoid droughts and floods like those that have been plaguing the USA in recent times.

Featured photo: South Fork Fire, New Mexico (Reproduction/Jesus Figueroa/CNN Newsource)