Longtime El Pasoan deals with loss of cabin charred in wildfires in Ruidoso

RUIDOSO, NM (KVIA) -- Former KVIA employee Eric Huseby is dealing with the loss of his cabin in Ruidoso, after the South Fork Fire swept through.

"I was just kind of numb," said Huseby, as he described what went through his head the moment he learned his cabin was burned down.

Huseby says, even though some structures were spared near his cabin, the buildings belonging to his immediate neighbors also went up in flames.

"I feel very fortunate, this was a rental property, but, other people they've lost their only home, and they've lost all of their possessions in it, and there was nothing too terribly sentimental in a rental cabin," said Huseby, "All your pictures of your family and things were with us where you live, and not there, so, other people have ti much worse and our hearts go out to them."

The New Mexico State police continue to turn away cabin owners like Huseby from visiting their properties after the wildfire roared through parts of Ruidoso. Law enforcement is blocking off the roads for safety reason.

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The former El Pasoan tells ABC-7 it'll be difficult to rebuild, however, he hopes to make a new cabin similar to what was there before the fire.

"It's tough because it truly was a labor of love. We spent thousands of hours just building decks and rockwayas and putting in flooring over the course of 15 years of continual improvement, and it's gone in an instant," said Huseby, who's confident Ruidoso will overcome these wildfires, with many of the structures in the village spared by the wildfires.

"I'm really encouraged there may be a lot for people to come back to," said Huseby.