New Mexico Launches Zika Awareness Campaign – Associated Press
The New Mexico Department of Health is launching a campaign to educate people about Zika.
The focus will be providing information to pregnant women and their partners who may be traveling to areas where the mosquito-borne virus is prevalent.
State officials said Friday that the campaign will include television and radio spots as well as billboards and movie theater advertising.
The virus is currently transmitted in vacation spots that are popular among New Mexicans, including Puerto Rico, the Caribbean Islands, most of Mexico, Central and South America and parts of Asia and Africa.
There have been no reported cases of Zika in New Mexico so far this year. In 2016, there were 10 cases, all of which involved people who were infected abroad and diagnosed after returning home.
30 Units Damaged In Fire At Storage Facility In Albuquerque – Associated Press
Firefighters are battling a blaze at an Albuquerque storage facility and they say 30 units have been damaged.
When firefighters arrived at the location off Interstate 25 around 1:30 p.m. Friday, they found three storage units fully engulfed in flames.
The flames spread to other units and prompted a second alarm as it grew to 30 units.
Albuquerque Fire Department officials the cause of the blaze is under investigation.
They say crews will remain at the storage facility overnight to make sure the fire is fully extinguished.
Deming Police: Young Girl Allegedly Abducted By Mom Is Safe – Associated Press
Police in Deming say an 8-year-old girl who was allegedly abducted by her mother in a custodial interference case has been located and she is safe.
They say an Amber Alert was issued about 11 a.m. Friday requesting the public's assistance in locating Chelsea Boomgaarn.
Police say 47-year-old Laurie Curtis has no legal custodial rights to her daughter.
The girl's grandmother contacted police to report her missing.
Deming police say they spoke to her father and grandmother investigating the alleged abduction.
Details about where the girl was found weren't immediately released.
It's also unclear if Curtis will face any charges.
Report Outlines Considerations For Oil, Gas Drilling – Associated Press
Federal land managers have laid out their plans for weighing the effects of oil and gas development in northwestern New Mexico on everything from archaeological resources to light pollution.
The Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Affairs have completed a scoping report as they look to update a management plan that will guide development in one of the nation's largest basins.
Environmentalists and Navajo Nation officials have voiced concerns in recent years about the uptick of drilling in the San Juan Basin and the proximity of wells and roads to Chaco Culture National Historical Park and other cultural sites.
They praised this week's report, saying it has the potential to set the stage for greater accountability.
The planning process is expected to be done by 2020.
Gov. Martinez Lifts Hiring Freeze After Finances Stabilize – Santa Fe New Mexican
A hiring freeze New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez ordered in March is being lifted after state finances stabilized.
A state Personnel Office spokesman told the Santa Fe New Mexican Thursday that the restrictions on new state hiring were lifted because it appears the state budget year won't end with a deficit on June 30.
Martinez implemented the hiring freeze and threatened to furlough state workers on March 25 amid a political standoff with lawmakers over the next year's proposed budget. The freeze had exemptions for public safety or revenue-generating posts.
New Mexico has seen an uptick in tax revenue and received assurances from the federal government that past-due payments for public land leases would arrive by the end of June.
Some lawmakers called the freeze unnecessary.
Sex-Trafficking Victim Who Dialed 911 Sues Responding Police – Associated Press
A woman who called 911 to report she was being held hostage is suing the Albuquerque Police Department and two of its officers on grounds that they did not rescue her when they could have.
KOB-TV reported Friday that the lawsuit claims police failed to adequately investigate after she called for help, which created a situation where her captor then raped her, beat her and shaved her head in retaliation. The woman was a victim of sex trafficking and remained a hostage days after she secretly found a phone and called for help.
She escaped from Tito Fajardo, who has since been imprisoned, by coming up with a plan where Fajardo took her near a sheriff's office. She was then able to run toward deputies and beg for help.
Roswell Police Say Body May Be That Of Man Missing Since May – Associated Press
Police in Roswell say a body found outside the city may be that of a man reported missing last month.
Police spokesman Todd Wildermuth says the body was found Thursday afternoon and it is believed to be that of 30-year-old Sergio Alexander Salas. A positive identification is pending.
Wildermuth says Salas was last seen by his mother on May 25 driving away from the Roswell home where they both lived in a black Chevrolet pickup. She reported him missing on June 2.
The Chaves County Sheriff's Office is investigating the death.
ICE Shutters Detention Alternate For Asylum-Seekers – Associated Press
The Trump administration is shutting down the least restrictive alternative to detention available to asylum-seekers who have entered the U.S. illegally.
A letter obtained by The Associated Press says the Family Case Management Program involving 630 families in five major metropolitan areas is shutting down June 20.
Immigration activists consider the move a callous insult to migrants fleeing traumatic violence and poverty in dysfunctional nations by a White House that has prioritized deportations over assimilating refugees.
Nearly all the program's participants are Central American mothers and children.