Blaze Breaks Out At NM Newspaper

Las Cruces firefighters evacuated employees of the Las Cruces Sun-News on Sunday afternoon after a fire broke out at the newspaper’s office.

Officials with the Las Cruces Fire Department said three buildings — all owned by the Sun-News — were damaged in the blaze.

The fire started in a building used for storage, according to fire officials.

“I was called by a number of my staffers to alert me to the fact that part of our building was engulfed in flames,” said Jim Lawitz, editor of the Las Cruces Sun-News.

A damage estimate has not yet been released. Officials said the main news building received some smoke and water damage.

A spokesman for the Las Cruces Fire Department said 25-30 firefighters were dispatched to tame the flames. They did so in about an hour’s time by working from the outside of the building. “They could not enter the building,” said Public Information Officer Dan Trujillo. “It was too hot and good thing because the majority of the building’s roof collapsed.”

Trujillo said no one appeared to be inside the building at the time.

Officials with the paper said they will have newspaper edition on Monday, either in print or online. “I can assure you that we will continue our commitment to our viewers and readers here in Las Cruces,” said Lawitz.

What caused the blaze is still unknown. No injuries have been reported.