New Mexico
Mountainair Ranger District Capilla Prescribed Fire October 24 Update
October 24, 2024 – Today fire managers on the Cibola National Forest & National Grasslands (NF & NG) were successfully able to implement the Capilla prescribed fire (Rx) on the Mountainair Ranger District. Weather conditions were favorable for ground and aerial ignitions. Due to the success of the day, minimal burning is expected tomorrow or over the weekend, however, there may be small interior pockets of fuels that require ignition. Due to light winds overnight, a smoke inversion is possible, especially throughout the Estancia Valley. This may cause smoke to settle in surrounding communities rather than disperse but is expected to dissipate as daytime temperatures increase.
Fire crews were able to burn approximately 570 acres beginning at 7:30 AM this morning. The Capilla Fuels Reduction and Restoration Project in the Manzano Mountains is located approximately 10 miles northwest of the town of Mountainair in the southern half of the Manzano Mountains of Torrance County New Mexico.
Smoke may be visible from Mountainair, Punta de Agua, Manzano, Torreon and Estancia Valley. Visitors to the Red Canyon Campground as well as the Red Canyon, Spruce Spring, New Canyon, and Crest Trails may be affected. There are currently no road or area closures in effect. The Cibola NF & NGs manages all prescribed fires in compliance with New Mexico state air quality and smoke management regulations. However, smoke may settle into drainages and lower elevations at night. Information on air quality and protecting your health can be found online at the https://www.airnow.gov/
Some objectives for the Capilla Rx include improving wildlife habitat by creating diversity in vegetation, returning fire to the ecosystem in a controlled and efficient manner, and to reduce fuel loadings/raise the canopy cover base to reduce the likelihood of a crown fire, all while providing for the safety of all fire personnel and members of the public.
Our land management strategy is centered on long-term forest health, including reducing forest fuels and using prescribed fire on the landscape. Prescribed fires are intended to reduce hazardous fuels accumulated due to drought, climate change, insects and disease, and decades of fire suppression. Additionally, fire managers use prescribed fire to improve forest health, remove hazardous fuels, increase firefighter safety, enhance wildlife habitat, and protect communities and watersheds. Prescribed fires are designed to meet specific objectives and are always managed with firefighter and public safety as the priority.
Implementation announcements and updates on prescribed fire projects will be posted on InciWeb, New Mexico Fire Information and on the Cibola NF & NGs website, Cibola Facebook and Cibola Twitter sites.
If you would like specific information, please contact the Mountainair Ranger District Office at (505) 847-2990 or the Cibola NF & NG Supervisor’s Office at (505) 346-3900.
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) — The Social Security Office released the most popular baby names for 2025 on Thursday. And here in New Mexico, we saw some familiar names top the charts once again.
Coming in at No. 1 for girls is Mia, and as for the boys, Noah ranks No. 1. That’s no change from 2024 when Mia and Noah also led the pack, both coming in at No 1. For 2025, there were a total of 66 babies named Mia and 115 babies named Noah, while in 2024, there were 81 Mias and 105 Noahs.
What do the names mean? Online sources list a few different interpretations for Mia, but one common association is with the Italian word “mia,” which means “mine.” As for Noah, the name is most commonly associated with the prominent bible figure. It’s thought to mean “rest,” or “comfort.”
Here’s a look at some of the other top baby names in New Mexico for 2025.
- Girls:
- Olivia (65 total)
- Sophia (65 total)
- Sofia (60 total)
- Camila (59 total)
- Eliana (57 total)
- Isabella (56 total)
- Amelia (53 total)
- Aria (45 total)
- Aurora (45 total)
- Boys:
- Liam (109 total)
- Mateo (99 total)
- Elijah (76 total)
- Santiago (70 total)
- Sebastian (69 total)
- Ezra (67 total)
- Elias (66 total)
- Ezekiel (66 total)
- Levi (69 total)
Nationally, Olivia and Liam are the most popular baby names, and have been for the past seven years, according to the Social Security Administration. As for the fastest-rising names, Klarity jumped nearly 1,400 spots on the girls’ list, and Kasai jumped 1,108 for boy names.
Other names rising in popularity for boys include Atlas, Adriel, Emiliano, Arthur, and Archer. On the girls’ list, Ailany, Sienna, Amara, and Georgia are becoming more popular.
You can find the full list by state online.
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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.
“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.
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