Uncontained fire spreading in New Mexico

A still uncontained, wind-driven wildfire in northern New Mexico that began more than a week ago had charred 81 square miles of ponderosa pine, oak brush and grass by Sunday morning north of Ocate, which is northeast of Santa Fe.

Winds and temperatures in New Mexico diminished Saturday but remained strong enough to still fan fires. Fire analyst Arthur Gonzales said that the changing weather should help firefighters make progress.

"Now that we're dropping some of that wind off and cooler temperatures and higher relative humidifies, it's going to allow us to change tactics on the fire. So, our folks are going to be able to go a lot more direct, get a little bit more aggressive, and then start to build some containment around the fire."

The wildfire is one of 20 that continued to burn Sunday in nearly half of the state’s drought-stricken 33 counties, prompting New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to sign emergency declarations.