Sandoval County, Rio Rancho Fire Rescue working together in Ruidoso

Three local fire rescue departments have combined forces to form a Regional Swift water rescue team that is currently working in Ruidoso.

Sandoval County Fire Rescue, Rio Rancho Fire Rescue and Albuquerque Fire Rescue formed the Regional Swift water rescue team, which has made several water rescues and assisted with evacuations caused by the detrimental floods from the burn scars of the South Fork and Salt fire in Ruidoso.

The crews are working with local agencies in the area: Ruidoso Fire, FEMA, National guard, Texas TF-1 and Arkansas TF-1. Together, the swift water division has conducted, on average, 20 rescues a day. The team has been also assisting with evacuations to mitigate the situation to prevent rescues.

One team has been in Ruidoso since July 5, and another team deployed July 13.

“We encourage you to remain vigilant and always keep informed on weather. Flash floods can occur rapidly with little to no warning,” Sandoval County Fire Rescue said in a social media post. “Sandoval County Fire Rescue would like to remind residents and all visitors to sign up for Code Red notifications for all emergency information in their area.”

Code Red is an emergency notification system that allows public safety officials to alert residents and businesses about emergencies. Alerts can be sent via phone, text message, email, social media or the CodeRED Mobile Alert app.