The Long Burn

The Slow Recovery From New Mexico’s Largest Wildfire

The federal government accidentally set the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon wildfire. Disaster aid has been hard to get and slow to arrive, and residents face a long journey to rebuild.

Impact of Our Reporting

FEMA Leader Overseeing $4 Billion Fund to Pay Victims of New Mexico Wildfire Steps Down

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico

January 19, 2024, 5:00 am EST

9 stories published since 2023

FEMA Told Victims of New Mexico’s Largest Wildfire It Can’t Pay for Emotional Harm. A Judge Will Likely Rule It Must.

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico

October 18, 2024, 12:30 pm EDT
I Moved to Rural New Mexico to Report on the Aftermath of a Massive Wildfire. My Neighbors Were My Best Sources.

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico

March 25, 2024, 5:00 am EDT
Record-Setting Blazes Are Growing More Common. Here’s What Survivors of One Want You to Know.

by Byard Duncan, ProPublica, and Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico, photography by Adria Malcolm for ProPublica

February 23, 2024, 5:00 am EST
In the Scar of New Mexico’s Largest Wildfire, a Legal Battle Is Brewing: What Is Victims’ Suffering Worth?

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico, and Byard Duncan, ProPublica

January 4, 2024, 5:00 am EST
A Former Police Chief Fought to Rebuild After a New Mexico Fire. He Died Before He Could Go Home.

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico

December 8, 2023, 5:00 am EST
Life in Limbo: Victims of New Mexico’s Biggest Wildfire Wait for Checks From the Federal Government to Rebuild

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico, and Byard Duncan, ProPublica

September 28, 2023, 5:00 am EDT
FEMA Has So Far Paid Out Less Than 1% of What Congress Allocated for Victims of New Mexico Wildfire

by Megan Gleason and Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico

July 17, 2023, 1:30 pm EDT
The Federal Government Accidentally Burned Down Their Houses, Then Made It Hard to Come Home

by Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico

April 24, 2023, 5:55 am EDT