Rural residents try to clear roads and feed livestock

CLAYTON, N.M. (AP)--Residents in northeastern New Mexico stranded by record snowfall are getting supplies flown in by helicopter and hungry cattle are getting hay thanks to the New Mexico National Guard, but the dire situation has prompted Gov. Bill Richardson to seek a federal disaster declaration.

With a declaration, Richardson said state and local governments would get help paying for items like snow removal or fence repairs and low-cost loans would be available to eligible applicants.

"We are taking every step possible to provide relief and assistance for those farmers and ranchers facing the prospect of catastrophic losses," Richardson said Jan. 3.

National Guard helicopters ferried supplies to homes and dropped more than 200 bales of hay to isolated livestock on Jan. 3. The Guard had similar missions planned for Jan. 4.

Union County has 1.8 million acres of rangeland, but the choppers have been making drops throughout the snow-covered region.

"It's going well," National Guard spokesman Tom Koch said. "The guys leading the charge are the livestock inspectors. Frankly, we're just going where they tell us. They are in constant contact with the ranchers."

Ray Baca, the northeast area supervisor for the New Mexico Livestock Board, was aboard one of the National Guard helicopters that touched down in Clayton on Jan. 3. He said the cattle were not in as bad shape as expected, likely because of clear and warmer daytime weather.

"I don't think there will be a big die-off because it's warm," he told the Albuquerque Journal in a copyright story published Jan. 4. "But if we get another storm, it could be bad."

Baca noted that some ranchers won't be able to get through the snow for some time and will need continued help to get feed to their animals.

The state Emergency Operations Center was working with the Livestock Board and Farm Services Bureau to identify the hardest hit areas and prioritize relief. Most of the rescue efforts started in the Clayton area.

Brandon Terrazas, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's New Mexico Farm Service Agency, said federal officials asked authorities in affected counties for damage assessments in an effort to match aid programs to needy residents.

Caren Cowan, executive director of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, asked anyone willing to donate hay to contact her office. She said the office would accept cash donations to help pay for feed purchases or snow removal equipment use.

The National Weather Service said an upper-level weather system will push toward the Four Corners area by early Friday evening, bringing more snow. The system was expected to cross New Mexico and leave the southeastern section Saturday.

Last week's storm dumped record snowfall in some areas and forced the closure of roads across New Mexico, canceled airline flights, prompted police to discourage travel and led state officials to activate New Mexico's Emergency Operations Center.

Road crews with the state Transportation Department and local governments have been working feverishly since last week to clear roads.

Richardson has ordered state plows and sanders to help clear roads in rural communities, and crews were being moved from Albuquerque or other cities to help in the northeastern plains.

State officials said crews from the Nara Visa patrol needed 12 hours to get through 15- to 18-foot snow drifts, then helped stranded motorists on New Mexico 402 near Clayton. They also helped telephone crews reach families needing power and phone services.

State Transportation Department workers also went through Boise City, Okla., to clear New Mexico 456 in the state's far northeastern corner. They later rescued a stranded family 15 miles west of the Oklahoma border.

Rep. Luciano "Lucky" Varela, D-Santa Fe, flew with a Guard helicopter that allowed officials to see snowpacked ranches on Rowe Mesa, which is in both San Miguel and Santa Fe counties.

He said the highway that goes across the top of the mesa from Rowe to south of Lamy was still only a single lane Jan. 3 afternoon. More than 2 feet of frozen snow on side roads kept some mesa residents stranded.

"I'm concerned about those people up there," Varela said.

In Raton, City Councilor Fred Sparks said the town was slowly digging out, but he still had more than 4 feet of snow around most of his house. Snowdrifts pushed more than a dozen feet high by high winds remained a problem in the county.

Date: 1/9/07

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