RUIDOSO, N.M. (KRQE) – In the aftermath of yet another wave of devastating natural disasters,
the Village of Ruidoso is looking to implement new tactics to protect residents and businesses that reside near the river.
The historic flooding caused the Rio Ruidoso to rise to 20 feet, destroying homes and killing three people. Now, more than a month later, Michael Martinez, the deputy village manager of Ruidoso, says the village is navigating its way out.
“Last year, after the fires, we knew that the burn scars would be impactful. We just didn’t know how much,” explained Martinez. “We think these burn scars and the waters that are coming off of them will really be impacting us anywhere between five to seven years, if not 10. And so that’s going to be significant.”
The village is conducting assessments to figure out its next steps forward by learning from past natural disasters and how it responded. “It’s actually very important that we make sure we track last year’s disasters and what happened from last year. We do a lot of that. We do damage assessments,” said Martinez.
The village has conducted costly mitigation work, removing over 350,000 tons of silt from the river and implementing HESCO baskets, which are reinforced sandbags, and trash racks to collect debris in the river.
“It costs us $21 million each time we do it, and so we’re limited in the number of times that we qualify for that. So we’re definitely working on different programs,” emphasized Martinez.
The village is also considering a property buy-back program, giving eligible property owners a chance to sell their flood-prone properties. The initiative would convert purchased properties into protected open spaces, but it would be a costly endeavor. “The village has requested roughly $605 million. That’s through Lincoln County as the sponsor for buybacks to help make residents whole and to acquire that land to help mitigate those impacts to future residents in the future,” explained Martinez.
Federal Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited Ruidoso earlier this month to assess the damage and awarded over $11 million in disaster funding. Secretary Noem announced the additional funding during her visit to Ruidoso. She had previously announced $3.1 million of upfront aid to the state, along with more than 160 emergency management staff who are to remain in the area.
President Trump signed an Emergency Disaster Declaration and a Major Disaster Declaration in response to the flooding. An additional $2.9 million in funding was awarded to help families rebuild.
