RUIDOSO, N.M. – Hundreds of people made their way back to Ruidoso Monday, exactly a week after the South Fork and Salt fires began.

The village reopened the majority of the town Monday morning at 8, but they aren’t going back to the same Ruidoso.

When the village announced the reopening Saturday, they made it clear residents should bring at least a week’s worth of food and water.

Evacuation centers are stepping up to offer residents everything they could need. ENMU Roswell is letting evacuees choose from dozens of nonperishable items like tuna and chicken packets. They also had several pallets of water available. KOB 4 crews also saw formula, diapers, children’s toys and more.

Martha D. Staab with ENMU Roswell told us the college didn’t even have to ask for help, the community, and organizations like Roadrunner Foodbank stepped up and immediately started donating.

“It was this the residents of the city, you know, we had a truckload of water and other things from Border Patrol. We didn’t ask for any of these things on that first day. We’re just more concerned about getting people in. And we had our back door open to the gym, where things were just coming at us. And I remember at one point, our VP Amory Oldfield said, we should get some bread and I think she made a call to Albertson’s, and she was just going to ask for like a few, but we ended up getting a truckload of breads,” said Martha D. Stabb, director of marking and public relations for ENMU Roswell.  

Residents in Sun Valley, Sierra Vista, Villa Madonna were let back in on Sunday. Ruidoso and Ruidoso Downs opened up Monday. 

KOB 4 spoke to Carlos Garcia, he and his family live right off of Highway 70. While he wasn’t close to the South Fork Fire, the Salt Fire was practically in his backyard about half a mile away.

“I feel better because right now I’m with my family. We are in our house, nothing happened to the house. And as you can see, it’s very close to the fire and to the forest. So if something happened, it will be something dangerous,” said Garcia. 

We checked the house, and he has electricity, gas and water. But the town is under a boil advisory. So not only does drinking water need to be boiled, so does the shower water. 

But Carlos says if it means he and his family will be safe, he’ll happily do it. He also has plenty of food and water he and his family were able to get from one of the evacuation centers.

As for how he and his family are doing mentally, they feel more secure now that they know the house is intact, but he still feels uneasy as the fires continue to rage on.

The community, local organizations and corporations have been stepping up in a major way. 

Anaheim Jack’s sits on Mechem Drive, right by Billy the Kid trail. They’ve stayed open this entire time to make sure local first responders have a warm free meal.

The restaurant’s employees have been volunteering their time, becoming essential workers. The restaurant says it’s received food and money from people and stores in Albuquerque, El Paso and more. 

“We are taking a hit, you know, just like everybody else is. But, you know, we’ve got so much support from outside of the community that has helped us do that. All my employees, they’re all volunteering their time as well. So we’re relying on just the donations,” said Steve Silva, general manager of Anaheim Jack’s. “It’s what we’ve always done, giving back to the community. It’s something that we are always involved with, whether it’s a coach for kids, you know, we’ve always got our hands in something. And this was no different.”

The restaurant is also working on putting together a benefit concert to raise money for residents who have lost their homes. That’s tentatively scheduled for July 27.

Folks who are immunocompromised might not be able to tolerate the ash, smoke and soot that is in the air.

Re-entry is only allowed for full-time local residents right now. Second homeowners and tourists are asked to hold off. IDs are being checked. Also, some parts are still off limits, those are considered exclusion zones. 

Not everything is fully open and operational, that includes emergency services. 911 may still be down. The village is working to resume full service at Lincoln County Medical Center.