FEMA Makes Available $1 Million for Atrisco Fire

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced $1,004,934 in grant funding to the New Mexico Energy, Minerals & Natural Resources Department, Division of Forestry.

The funds are to reimburse state and local firefighting agencies that responded to the Atrisco Fire. The wildland fire started on June 24, 2003 and burned more than 3,400 acres in Albuquerque.

“When the Atrisco fire started, thousands of residents lost power, nearly 1,000 people were evacuated and the fire threatened nearly 600 homes,” said Michael Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response. “As the fire burned, a fire management grant was authorized. We never want the cost of fighting wildfires to limit the resources needed to protect people and minimize property loss.”

The FEMA Fire Management Assistance Program is provided under the President’s Disaster Relief Fund and is made available to help fight wildland fires that threaten to cause a major disaster. The assistance enables covers 75 percent of the state’s eligible costs, including expenses for field camps; equipment use, repair and replacement; tools, materials and supplies; and mobilization and demobilization activities.