ROSWELL, N.M. – Many families in Ruidoso are left without a home following the South Fork and Salt fires.

Eloisa Lucero, an evacuee from Ruidoso, told KOB 4 she learned through social media that the only thing left standing at their home was the American flag they had hanging outside. 

She says their house was one of the few that burned down in their neighborhood. Although they are letting some residents back into Ruidoso, Lucero told us they don’t plan on moving back.

She says they were already having trouble finding a place to rent that was affordable and accepted pets.

“We decided, you know, this is probably a better area to try to look, especially after all the damages to a lot of homes down there. And people are going to have issues finding housing. So we just decided to move forward and, you know, find a place here as quickly as possible so we can get settled and move on,” said Lucero.

Lucero says their only connection to Ruidoso is their business, which they soon hope to bring to Roswell. 

“We do plan on moving it, moving over here as well, possibly opening a second location, depending on how the one in Ruidoso goes after the fires,” said Lucero.