Most comply, but a number of stubborn souls refuse to budge, the authorities say. Some linger to protect their livestock. Others stay, vowing to protect their homes and businesses. The authorities call the holdouts foolhardy and require them to sign liability waivers, but do not try to force them out.
“They have a constitutional right to stay on their property,’’ said Brannon Eagar, the chief deputy of the Apache County Sheriff’s Department, who acknowledged being frustrated by those who stay behind. “We will not go in and remove people, but we will not be liable for their safety.’’
The smoke that fills the air here reminded some of the blistering snowstorm that swept through Greer, about 15 miles southwest, last winter, but without the chill.
The smoke blocked out the sun, made mountain roads even more treacherous, and prevented the hospital from evacuating some patients by air ambulance on Monday.
“It extends for hundreds of miles and was so bad this morning that neither the helicopter nor the fixed-wing aircraft could go up,’’ said Jerry Campeau, chief executive officer of the 25-bed White Mountain Regional Medical Center, which has had a steady stream of people coming in with respiratory problems. “We had to take patients out by road.’’
All but the main roads are shut here, and law enforcement officials have been directing evacuees to head west, toward Phoenix, and not toward Albuquerque, where the fierce winds are blowing the smoke.
Sue Chlarson and her husband spent several days packing up their home in southern Eagar, which would be one of the first consumed if the fire veered toward the town. She said those who stay behind were misguided.
“Your property is important but your life is more important,’’ she said. “What about all those people who depend on you? Is staying fair to them?’’
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