A house fire in the Ranchos de Veguita subdivision resulted in a total loss of the residence.

According to North County Fire Chief, Shawn Watkins, firefighters responded to a call at 8:53 p.m. on March 6 to Wallner Drive. Midway, Rio Communities and Valencia County fire departments also joined the effort. The crews worked through the night and were able to clear the scene by Thursday morning. Socorro Electric co-op removed a pole that had fallen over.

“The first arriving unit described it as a sea of fire,” said Watkins, “as far as we are aware there was at least one explosion of a propane tank, but nobody was hurt, and nobody was inside the house.”

He said, at first, when the call came in, they were advised on the radio that the house was abandoned, but that didn’t end up being the case.

“I don’t know entirely the truth of that situation. At some point, there was somebody living there. We don’t know whether it was their residence, or they were just kind of squatting there,” Watkins said.

He said they were advised that an animal was inside of the residence. Out of five dogs, only four were located, it’s currently unknown if one dog perished in the fire or ran away.

“As far as we are aware, it was a single wide mobile home that had a couple other additions added on to it and one or two camper trailers from what we can tell by the frames,” Watkins said. “It was a total loss.”

Watkins said the property owner left before he could make contact with them.
There were no injuries to civilians or firefighters reported.

Jessica Carranza | Editor