Taos, N.M., November 16, 2024—Fire crews began ignitions on the Highway 150 Piles Prescribed Fire today. Here’s the latest:
Fire crews completed 40 additional acres in the Highway 150 Piles project area, mostly on the southside of New Mexico Highway 150 and along the Bull of the Woods trail.
Crewswill take advantage of ongoing favorable conditions tomorrow, November 17, to continue treating remaining piles on the along Highway 150 and in Taos Ski Valley.
Trails along Highway 150 remain open, but hikers should exercise caution and expect some smoke.
Once again, it took a team to make today happen. Fire managers would like to thank staff from across the Forest, including Taos Ski Valley Fire Department, Red River Fire Chasers, the Carson Hotshots and West Zone fire resources for their efforts in today’s success.
Project Background
Today’s work is part of the Highway 150 Corridor Wildland Urban Interface Project. Local organizations in 2014 came together to form the Taos Valley Watershed Coalition, which named the highway corridor as one of its priorities for protecting the forest and watershed that communities depend on.
The piles were made from thinning along length of Highway 150 within Carson National Forest, between Valdez to above the Village of Taos Ski Valley along the Wheeler Peak Trail. More information about the project is available at fs.usda.gov/goto/Hwy150Project.
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Today’s burn occurred in the Enchanted Circle Wildfire Crisis Landscape, an area recognized by Congress as a national priority given its ecological and cultural importance.
Smoke
Fire managers work with the New Mexico Environment Department to conduct ignitions on days when smoke impacts will be limited. Nonetheless, smoke will be present and will impact nearby areas, especially in the afternoons and evenings.
Smoke readiness tips are available at fs.usda.gov/goto/CarsonRxSmoke.
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LAS CRUCES, N.M. — An ‘imposter nurse’ in Las Cruces is facing 34 charges after nearly causing the death of a patient and illegally giving medications to patients under 18 years old.
A Doña Ana County grand jury indicted Margarita Gonzalez. She is accused of assuming the identities of nurses in Texas to get hired at four nursing facilities in Las Cruces:
Village at Northrise
Las Cruces Wellness and Rehabilitation
Peak Behavioral Health
Matrix Home Care
The New Mexico Department of Justice’s Medicaid Fraud and Elder Abuse Bureau investigated and discovered instances where Gonzalez illegally gave injections and dispensed prescriptions, including narcotics to eight inpatient residents under 18 years old.
An investigation also found Gonzalez was also about to allegedly give “an incorrect insulin dose” to a patient that they claim could’ve killed the patient if another nurse hadn’t caught the error.
Several facilities fired Gonzalez over patient safety concerns and an observed lack of knowledge.
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“Impersonating a healthcare provider is a reckless and selfish crime that subjects those most vulnerable to risk of serious injury or death,” Attorney General Raúl Torrez said. “I will not tolerate those who risk the safety of patients or cause danger and unnecessary confusion within the healthcare system. These charges should keep anyone attempting to pose as a healthcare provider on notice: we will find you, and we will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law to protect New Mexicans.”
Gonzalez’s charges include identity theft, nursing without a license, abuse of a resident, distribution of controlled substances to a minor and fraud totaling over $25,000.
If convicted on all counts, Gonzalez could face up to 100 years in prison.
