ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The mayor and fire chief say Albuquerque firefighters had a grueling two months in December and January, responding to a big increase in what are characterized as serious fires.
Mayor Tim Keller and Fire Chief Dow didn’t give a cause for the spike in a Friday briefing that tallied 209 significant fires during the span, along with more than 14,000 other calls for medical, rescue and other services.
They said calls in February appear to be returning to a more normal level.
By comparison, Albuquerque Fire Rescue responded to an average of 64 significant fires each in October and November.
Keller says the department handled the jump in the number of calls, even during a pandemic, without missing a beat.
Fire Chief Paul Dow called every structure fire response unique, with dangers including erratic fire behavior and the threat of structural collapse always a possibility.
The department responded to 90,208 calls of all kinds in 2020, the officials said.
