December 2006 snow storm proved to be possibly the most significant storm to pound the northern New Mexico Mountains in a long time. With nearly five feet falling in the last twenty four hours, much of the Moreno Valley “hunkered” down, waiting for the calm.

County crews made several rescues; helping stranded motorists find shelter. On December 29 the Angel Fire Resort set up a shelter in one of their conference rooms to help stranded motorists and residents who could not get to their homes. The Village of Eagle Nest declared a state of emergency and opened their public buildings to tourists and residents who were stranded in their town. According to Emergency Manager Roger Terry, the Village of Eagle Nest took in twelve people and provided food and shelter for the evening. Mayor Hascall - assisted by Colfax County Emergency Planner Roger Terry – sought assistance from the Red Cross for blankets, cots, and food.

Throughput the day, county fire department personnel made contact with individual communities within district 6, and made contingency plans for emergency visits to resident’s homes. While Palo Flechado Pass into Taos and Bobcat Pass into Red River remained closed all day, the county commissioners declared an official state of emergency. A state of emergency enables the county to hire private contractors to help with snow removal without the usual long and exhaustive bidding process that usually accompanies government acquisitions.

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 30th, 2006 at 9:22 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.