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A4 U.S. NEWS
Monday 9 May 2022
Dangerous winds, wildfire conditions returning to New Mexico

Associated Press a good potential of be-
LAS VEGAS, N.M. (AP) — Af- coming extremely active
ter a few days of calm al- and any ongoing fires we'll
lowed some families who also see extreme activ-
had fled wildfires raging in ity because of this historic
northeast New Mexico to combination of fire weath-
return to their homes, dan- er that we're seeing right
gerous winds picked up now," she added.
again Sunday, threatening Abel said the good news
to spread burning embers was that additional fire
that could ignite new fires crews continue to arrive
and complicate work for from around the West.
firefighters. For many California fire-
More than 1,500 firefight- fighters backing up local
ers were on the fire lines units, the winds in New
at the biggest blaze east Mexico are puzzling. Un-
and northeast of Santa like the sustained Santa
Fe, which grew another 8 Ana winds in southern Cali-
square miles (20 square ki- fornia, the air around the
lometers) overnight to an Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon
area more than twice as fires in New Mexico have
large as the city of Philadel- swirled around and been
phia. redirected in complex and
The area's largest rural changing interactions with
town — Las Vegas, New the mountains.
Mexico, population 13,000 A flare up near Cleveland, just down 519 from Mora, N.M. darkens the sky on Wednesday, May "We'll see what happens,"
— appeared safe for now 4, 2022, where firefighters have been battling the Hermit's Peak and Calf Canyon fire for weeks. said fire battalion chief
thanks to fire lines dug by Associated Press Ryan Lewis, of Ontario,
bulldozers and other priority California, on a rare break
preparations over the past result in extreme fire behav- Thousands of residents populate a section of town with his firefighters at a lo-
week. ior." have evacuated due to already," he said. "Our con- cal hotel that's serving hot
But authorities appealed A few helicopters were able flames that have charred cern right now is on the meals to fire workers and
to residents on the outskirts to gather new information large swaths of the San- southwest portion of the evacuees.
who've already been or- from the air on the spread gre de Cristo Mountains in fire which the wind is help- Nationwide, close to 2,000
dered to evacuate to de- of the flames early Sunday northeastern New Mexico ing us out, sort of, because square miles (5,180 square
lay no longer. "but they won't be up there — a total of 275 square it's blowing the flames back kilometers) have burned so
"If things start picking up to- very long because of the miles (712 square kilome- into the fire." far this year, with 2018 be-
day as they are expected winds out there," Abel said. ters). But Wendy Mason with the ing the last time this much
to do," fire spokesman Todd "The wind is incredible. It The swirling winds gust- New Mexico Forestry Divi- fire had been reported at
Abel warned Sunday, and is precedent setting, the ing up to 50 mph (80 kph) sion warned that "by no this point, according to the
"you are trying to leave the amount of wind we are go- made it difficult to predict means" is anyone "out of National Interagency Fire
area and we are trying to ing to have and the dura- where the flames would go potential danger." Center. And predictions
go in, that obviously causes tion we are going to have later Sunday and into Mon- "Just because the winds for the rest of the spring do
a lot of problems, conges- it," he said a briefing Sun- day. are coming from one di- not bode well for the West,
tion, confusion." day in Las Vegas. Ryan Berlin, fire information rection doesn't mean they where long-term drought
A red-flag warning was in "They are predicting the officer, said Sunday after- can't change direction so and warmer temperatures
effect, kicking off what fire wind to blow all day today, noon the city of Las Ve- it's better to be prepared brought on by climate
officials predicted would through the night, all day gas itself is "very safe at this and have residents ready change have combined
be another "historic, multi- tomorrow so that is a long point." to go," she said. to worsen the threat of
day wind event that could time for our fire," he said. "We even started to re- "Any new fire that starts has wildfire.q
NXIVM guru wants new judge to decide evidence planting claim

new federal judge to con- sex-trafficking conspiracy. wrote in a motion Friday
sider a motion for new trial They cited a heated ex- in Brooklyn federal court.
filed last week that argues change last year in which "Anyone who had entered
federal authorities framed Garaufis threatened to the courtroom and wit-
Raniere by planting child have one of Raniere's attor- nessed Judge Garaufis'
pornography on a com- neys arrested during a resti- outrageous comments dur-
puter hard drive. tution hearing in which Ra- ing trial, at the restitution
Raniere's lawyers take niere was ordered to pay hearing, or at sentencing,
aim at U.S. District Judge $3.5 million to 21 victims, a would have concluded
Nicholas Garaufis in new sum that included the cost that the judge was biased
court papers, alleging he of surgically removing scars against Mr. Raniere and his
showed a "lack of judicial from branding rituals per- counsel."
temperament" and "deep- formed by a secret sorority. Federal prosecutors have
In this April 13, 2018 courtroom sketch, Keith Raniere, center, seated, unequivocal hos- "Only a new judge can not yet responded to the
attends a hearing at court in the Brooklyn borough of New York. tility" for Raniere through- fairly adjudicate any fur- motion to disqualify Ga-
Associated Press out the proceedings that ther issues in this case raufis. They have denied
landed the disgraced self- without these pre-existing Raniere's claims of gov-
NEW YORK (AP) — Attor- former leader of the cult- improvement guru in feder- biases and prejudices," ernment tampering with
neys for Keith Raniere, the like NXIVM group, want a al prison for 120 years for a attorney Joseph Tully evidence.q