Another Bad Fire Season Expected In NM

Fire officials are preparing for another rough year in New Mexico.

Forecasters have been issuing fire weather watches as spring storms bring dry lightning and gusty winds to the state.

More than 80 percent of the state is mired in drought, and Gov. Susana Martinez has warned 2012 could be a repeat of a destructive 2011.

State Forestry Division spokesman Dan Ware says "the potential is still there" for wildfires.

In some places, the fire season is already under way. Colorado had a deadly wildfire last month. Other Western states have reported hundreds of smaller fires.

Federal meteorologists say nearly all of the Southwest is experiencing drought. .

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.