Residents and business owners will be allowed to return to the small, privately run ghost town of Mogollon on Monday as fire crews battling the largest wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history continued to make progress.þþThe town was evacuated on May 26 as extreme wind fueled the Whitewater-Baldy Complex fire, now covering 377 square miles.þþThe Catron County sheriff’s office decided to lift the evacuation order on Monday because crews were able to build some containment lines on the fire’s western flank, Tara Ross, a spokeswoman for crews fighting the fire, said Sunday.þþMs. Ross said milder weather on Sunday and in the days ahead should allow firefighters to contain more of the blaze.þþThe community of Willow Creek on the fire’s northern flank remained evacuated, Ms. Ross said, because containment lines in the area were not as strong.þþAlthough the more than 1,200 firefighters on the blaze were making progress, the fire remained 17 percent contained on Sunday, with no projection for when it may be fully controlled.þþThe Whitewater-Baldy Complex fire has destroyed a dozen cabins while burning in the Gila National Forest. A pair of lightning-sparked fires grew together to form the huge blaze.
Source: NY Times
