State officials dispute account in Swickard column

NewsNM Swickard: Heath asks good questions in his column, my response is below his column  - From NMPolitcs.net - By Heath Haussamen - In his column this week, Michael Swickard argues that it’s “time to fire the political fire managers” who he says made “the political decision” to let the Little Bear Fire near Ruidoso continue as a controlled burn instead of putting it out quickly. That’s not what state officials say happened. Gov. Susana Martinez and Eddie Tudor, bureau chief of resource management for New Mexico forestry, held a news conference in Ruidoso to try to stop the spread of rumors. Here’s Tudor, as quoted by the Ruidoso News: “‘The question has come up, why wasn’t water used, why wasn’t a bucket drop used,’ he said. Because of the elevation of the fire, 10,500 feet above sea level, helicopters were unable to respond with standard equipment, he said. Read more

State officials dispute account in Swickard column