Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 121, No. 141 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — Millions of North Korean children are not getting the food, medicine or health care they need to develop physically or mentally, leaving many stunted and malnourished ...
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A break from unfavorable weather conditions allowed for progress in suppression efforts of the Little Bear fire, which as of Tuesday evening was 30 percent contained. Lighter wind speeds, higher humidity, lower temperatures, cloud cover and a boost in personnel and equipment have contributed to partial containment. The fire was estimated at 36,242 acres, located in the Smokey Bear Ranger District, Lincoln National Forest, including the White Mountain Wilderness, and has destroyed 224 residential structures and 10 outbuildings.
Personnel more than doubled from the weekend, rising from 429 to 979 by Tuesday, and resources committed included 24 incident mancrews, 53 agement engines, 12 helicopters, 12 dozers and nine water tenders.
The Little Bear fire still poses strong potential for extreme fire behavior despite recent progress, according to Fire Information Officer Karen Takai.
“There’s still very active fire activity within the parameter of the fire, so there’s still a high risk in the area,” Takai said, Tuesday. “With that said, containment and checks and balances are in place in most of the area except as we head toward the
wilderness. But within the communities of Ruidoso and Capitan, there has been a lot of work in those areas, and we’re continuing to strengthen lines throughout the day. “We’re telling the communities to be prepared because you never know. But again our lines around that area are really strong — we’re holding them, and we’re definitely looking a lot better than what we did a few days ago.”
Gov. Susana Martinez declared a state of emergency in Lincoln County, signing an executive order on Tuesday that makes additional emergency funds and resources available from the state for fire operations and communi-
Mark Wilson Photo
A house, unscathed by the Little Bear fire in the White Mountain Wilderness of the Lincoln National Forest, sits dangerously close to the blaze, Tuesday.
WEB
For The Past 24 Hours
• Fiddle and Griddle the newest of our fun things to do • 35,000 acres burned, zero contained • Fatal accident • Feds say lizard-listing fears not realistic • Invaders into first
INSIDE SPORTS Mark Wilson Photo
Dense smoke emanates from the Little Bear fire in the White Mountain Wilderness of the Lincoln National Forest as firefighters create a backburn to better control the blaze, Tuesday.
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TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Margarita “Mage” Roldan • Pat Alston Ward • Bob J. Chrisman • William Hartman • Ramona Ramirez - PAGE A3
HIGH .100˚ LOW ....68˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
INDEX CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A3 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8 WORLD .................A7
ty needs. “While fire crews are working around the clock to protect lives and property, the Little Bear fire has already taken an enormous toll on Lincoln County,” Martinez stated. “This emergency declaration will ensure that we are allocating every available resource to help prevent further damage. We are fully committed to fighting this fire and doing everything we can to keep Lincoln County residents safe.” On Monday, air tankers dropped 25 loads of retar-
dant on the fire, and helicopters dropped water throughout the day. A direct line was established around the Ski Apache Resort and Eagle Lake area, and crews secured a line on the northeast flank into Nogal Canyon. Approximately 25 miles of dozer line was in place by that evening on the eastern edge. On the southeastern flank, a dozer line was improved and tied in with NM 232. All planned burn outs went well, and
After counting, Pirtle comes out ahead RFD no longer in Ruidoso JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) — A former Penn State assistant coach who was a central figure in Joe Paterno’s downfall testified Tuesday that he heard a “skin-on-skin smacking sound” in a campus locker room one night in 2001 ...
WEDNESDAY
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TOP 5
MCQUEARY SAYS HE SAW ASSAULT
June 13, 2012
Weather helps in efforts to fight fire NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
TWO-THIRDS NKOREANS GO HUNGRY
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
While the 2012 canvassing of Chaves County election results did not change the ultimate outcome of any races, it rendered a closer race, by one vote, between Republican candidates Cliff Pir-
tle, a Roswell farmer, and Roswell Fire Chief Chad Hamill.
Pirtle is the presumptive Republican nominee for state Senate District 32. The district, which is currently represented by Senate President Pro Tem Tim Jennings, D-Roswell, encompasses Chaves,
One dies in roll over JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Around 9:57 a.m. Monday, the New Mexico State Police, the Berrendo Fire Department and the Roswell Fire Department Rescue Unit responded to a roll over accident 50 miles north of Roswell on US 285. According to the NMSP’s investigating officer Sgt. Lawrence Murray, the driver, Joseph Pena of Eagle Pass, Texas, fell asleep at the wheel while traveling northbound on 285 near the 151 mile marker. The vehicle, a 2000 Ford pickup drifted into the central median strip. Pena woke up and attempted to correct his steering. The vehicle veered sharply to the right, causing the pickup to roll several times. “This was (a) very violent roll over. Both victims were wearing seat belts, and both were found inside the vehicle. The injuries depended on where the crush damage was in the vehicle. That’s why we call them crashes rather than accidents.... When metal meets earth, something’s got to give,” Murray said. The passenger, Pena’s 16-year-old brother Javier, was pinned inside the vehicle and had to be extricated. The truck came to rest on its side. The Roswell Fire Department had to cut the roof off the truck to get to the youth. “That’s why we responded, because it was a medical emergency and we had the equipment to cut him out. It took about 15 minutes to 30 minutes get him from the cab and prepared for transport,” said RFD Chief Chad Hamill. Javier was airlifted to University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, but died in transit. The 19-year-old driver was taken to Eastern New Mexico Medical Center in Roswell by ambulance. “He was later flown to Lubbock for treatment of his injuries,” Hamill said. Although no fire resulted from the crash, US 285 northbound was closed for approximately two hours while the scene was investigated and area cleared for traffic. The New Mexico State Police ruled that fatigue was a contributing factor in this crash. j.palmer@rdrnews.com
Eddy and Otero counties. The unof ficial primary results show Pirtle as receiving 956 votes in Chaves County to Hamill’s now 924. As it stands now, Pirtle has received 1,018 total votes to Hamill’s 1009. County Clerk Rhoda Coakley said Democratic
voter turnout was 15.5 percent, Republican tur nout was nearly 34 percent, with turnout in the county at 25 percent for the primary election. With the County Commission’s permission, four members of the Absentee Board, two Democrats
See PIRTLE, Page A2
Ruling on sagebrush lizard coming soon SANTA FE (AP) — A small striped lizard that lives only in the windswept sand dunes of four southeastern New Mexico counties and four others in West Texas is about to learn its fate. The Obama administration is expected to announce this week whether the dunes sagebrush lizard will be listed as an endangered species. Tom Buckley, a spokesman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Albuquerque, said a decision could come as early as Thursday, The Las Cruces Sun-News reported. The dunes sagebrush lizard, sometimes called the sand dune lizard, lives only in sand dune complexes that have shinnery oak, a low shrub-like tree — which limits it to the Mescalero Sands area of New Mexico and part of West Texas. Federal biologists have said the lizard has been threatened because its habitat has decreased or been fragmented by oil and gas development. If
the lizard is added to the endangered species list, its habitat would be protected under federal law. Debate over whether the lizard should receive federal protection has raged for years. Daniel Ashe, the wildlife service’s director, postponed a scheduled ruling on the lizard in December, saying he wanted another six months to consider scientific data. Numerous Republicans in Congress, especially Rep. Steve Pearce of New Mexico, have argued against endangered status for the lizard. Pearce said thousands of jobs in the oil and gas industry would be in jeopardy if the lizard were listed. The Center for Biological Diversity and other environmental groups then accused Pearce of spreading misinformation to scare the public. Ecologists with the center said the lizard occupies only about 1 percent of public lands in New
See LIZARD, Page A3
See FIRE, Page A2
JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Roswell Fire Department, who had been assisting with structure fires in Ruidoso, have been demobilized from the Little Bear fire. “We no longer have crews at the Little Bear fir e,” said Roswell Fir e Chief Chad Hamill. The problem, according to Hamill, is the regulatory rating required for fighting forest fires. “The federal government sent us home. I don’t agree with it, but there you have it,” he said. It was the State Forestry Division who called the RFD into the area after the Little Bear fire broke containment on Friday. “We wer e asked to come up there and help at 3 o’clock Satur day mor ning. We have a mutual aid agreement with the surrounding counties,” Hamill said. City Manager Larry Fry also noted that mutual aid agreement between towns and counties. Last year RFD sent men to Lovington under this agreement. However, Fry said that the fire stations have maintained full staff of personnel throughout. He said that RFD’s primary participation in the Little Bear fire was to protect the lives and property. “We ar e good at saving exposures. Our priorities are life safety, house and See RFD, Page A2