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Morning Word
NM faces “tough long week” following catastrophic fires
New Mexico’s fire season began over the weekend with early ferocity, fueled by winds on Friday that reached 90 mph in parts of the state. Speaking in a news conference Saturday afternoon, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham described the conditions that had led to 20 fires burning in 16 counties as “unprecedented in New Mexico history. It is only April, and yet we are seeing fire spread that we have only ever seen in this state—and in many states, frankly in the Southwest—in late May, and June. So our risk season is incredibly and dangerously early.” The governor urged the thousands of residents in evacuated communities across the state to heed warnings and follow evacuation orders (updates on evacuation statuses can be found via the Homeland Security Department’s wildfire site). “There is no reason for us to lose anyone because they made a decision to stay even in a mandatory evacuation order,” the governor said. “Please. We want you to be safe.”
The Calf Canyon Fire near Las Vegas remains the top concern. On Saturday, fire managers began reporting its combined acreage with the Hermits Peak Fire after the two merged into a complex fire that had burned 54,000 acres and is 12% contained as of the latest reporting. Over the weekend, officials said the fire threatened 900 structures, but they have been unable to assess damages in the area yet. However, fire officials gave an update Sunday night, which included a flyover video of the fire perimeter near Highway 518, with Southwest Area Incident Management Team 1 Commander Carl Schwope noting “tremendous progress” on the fire following favorable weather conditions on Saturday. The governor has signed emergency declarations for Mora, Colfax, Lincoln, San Miguel and Valencia counties, and said Saturday the state has been in contact with the White House and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to access federal assistance in the fires. Nonetheless, she noted, “this is going to be a tough, long week.”
Pueblos navigate new cannabis terrain
For New Mexico’s Native American governments, cannabis commerce holds the promise for major economic development. But the legal framework leaves sovereign nations such as the Pueblos of Picuris and Pojoaque in a gray area. While adult recreational sales are now legal—and booming—here, cannabis remains illegal under federal law, applicable on tribal land. In March, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an inter-governmental agreement with Pueblo of Picuris Gov. Craig Quanchello and Pueblo of Pojoaque Gov. Jenelle Roybal in support of their governments’ participation in the cannabis industry. Whether that agreement will make for smooth operations remains to be seen. Quanchello says Picuris Pueblo, which has operated medical cannabis facilities for years, plans to participate in the recreational industry, despite a history of federal raids and harassment from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. “We are New Mexicans and we should have the right, like any other New Mexican, to engage in cannabis,” Quanchello tells SFR. Roybal says Pojoaque Pueblo intends to open a dispensary, but not without talking with federal agencies further. “That’s what our conversations are right now, that there’s no law enforcement action with them on their part,” she says. “Nothing is confirmed. We definitely want to meet with [the BIA] before we open everything up.”
US Sen. Luján pushes Meta on Spanish-language disinfo
A year ago, US Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-NM, led a congressional hearing focused on disseminating accurate information about the COVID-19 vaccine, during which Luján noted that despite social media companies saying “that all of their content moderation efforts are effective in English, research [has found] Facebook is less than half as effective at labeling misleading content in Spanish than they are in English.” Last week, Luján again took the lead in a letter signed by nearly two dozen members of Congress urging Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, formerly Facebook, to increase platform moderation of Spanish-language disinformation on the war in Ukraine from Russian-owned media outlets. “Since the beginning of the year, Russian state-controlled outlets have made a concentrated effort to target Spanish-speaking communities to spread false-narratives leading up to, and in the aftermath of, the invasion of Ukraine,” the letter reads. “The viral spread of these narratives stands in stark contrast to assurances that Meta made to the public and Members of Congress that it is prioritizing the pressing needs of Hispanic communities in the United States.”
COVID-19 by the numbers
New cases: 192; 521,018 total cases
Deaths: six; Santa Fe County has had 273 total deaths; there have been 7,442 total fatalities statewide. Hospitalizations: 51; Patients on ventilators: five
Transmission: According to the most recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “community levels” tracking system—which uses case rates along with two hospital metrics in combination to determine the state of the virus on a county level—all 33 of New Mexico’s counties currently have “green”—aka low—levels. The CDC updates its map on Thursdays.Breakthrough cases: According to the state’s most recent vaccine report, during the four-week period of March 21 to April 18, 40% of COVID-19 cases in New Mexico were among people who had not completed a primary vaccination series; 20.8% were among those who had completed the series but had not received a booster; and 38.6% were among those who were fully vaccinated and boosted. For hospitalizations, those figures change to 55.7%,18% and 26.2%. The percentages shift to 45.5%, 22.7% and 31.8% for fatalities.
Resources: Vaccine registration; Booster registration Free at-home rapid antigen tests; Self-report a positive COVID-19 test result to the health department; COVID-19 treatment info: oral treatments Paxlovid (age 12+) and Molnupiravir (age 18+); and monoclonal antibody treatments. Toolkit for immunocompromised individuals. People seeking treatment who do not have a medical provider can call NMDOH’s COVID-19 hotline at 1-855-600-3453.
You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
Listen up
Over the weekend, more than 1,000 firefighters battled dozens of blazes across New Mexico, as high winds, drought and other conditions launched what is expected to be a long and difficult fire season. A new special episode of New Mexico PBS’ Our Land program, “The Longest Season,” explores why the state’s fire season is arriving earlier and staying longer; the challenges wildland firefighters face; and how communities can protect themselves today and into the future.
Dark Winds coming
ICYMI, AMC has released the trailer for Dark Winds, a forthcoming television series premiering June 12 based on author Tony Hillerman’s Leaphorn & Chee series. George RR Martin, who is an executive producer along with Robert Redford, Chris Eyre and several others, recently wrote about the series on his blog, remarking that Hillerman “was one of the first friends I made when I moved to New Mexico in 1979, and it’s an honor to be able to help to bring his stories and characters to the screen.” In addition to praising his fellow producers (Eyre also directed the pilot and three other episodes in the first season’s six episodes), Martin points out that the show “was filmed right here in the Land of Enchantment, in and around Santa Fe, on the Navajo reservation and other tribal lands, and at Camel Rock Studios. The young writers and directors in our writers’ room were all Native American, and I think you will be hearing a lot from some of them in the years to come… maybe for their work on DARK WINDS (fingers crossed).” The series, as described by AMC: “It’s 1971 on a remote outpost of the Navajo Nation near Monument Valley. Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn of the Tribal Police is besieged by a series of seemingly unrelated crimes. The closer he digs to the truth, the more he exposes the wounds of his past. He is joined on this journey by his new deputy, Jim Chee, who also has old scores to settle from his youth. Together, the two men battle the forces of evil, each other and their own personal demons on the path to salvation.”
Hero worship
We are excited to make and eat these microgreen savory pancakes Edible New Mexico provides as a spring recipe. But we are even more excited to weigh in with our picks for Edible’s Local Hero awards competition. Voting continues through May 11, and the contest includes a slew of categories—all food related one way or the other—such as chefs, food trucks, mixologists, bakers and more. These are statewide awards, so you will see Santa Fe people and places competing against those in other parts of the state in some categories, while Santa Fe has its own chef and restaurant categories. Winners will be announced in July. After voting, we may reward ourselves with these savory cabbage pancakes (you can read Edible’s entire spring issue here). And speaking of awards, the full ballot for SFR’s 2022 Best of Santa Fe competition officially debuts for voting in May, but you can get an early look at it now right here; we will be celebrating in-person with the return of the BOSF party in July. Is it summer yet?
Air quality alert
The National Weather Service forecasts sunny skies in Santa Fe today with a high near 64 degrees and southeast wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Santa Fe could experience some smoke today from several fires burning in the northern part of the state, including the Cerro Pelado Fire east of Jemez Springs, and an air quality alert is in effect through noon. The state environment department has more information on protecting your health on smoky days here, and you can view an interactive smoke map here. Looking forward, the state has some chances for rain on Wednesday, and a return to critical fire weather at the end of the week.
Thanks for reading! The Word did not participate in the World Regret Survey, but she did read through the responses from New Mexico.
