A wildfire started two weeks ago in the U.S. state of New Mexico worsened Tuesday, spreading nearly 3,500 acres of land and prompting evacuations, local media reported.

The wildfire, believed to have been started by lightning on a national forest land in north New Mexico on June 15, has burned 3,425 acres (1,386 hectares) and has no sign of abating because of extremely dry conditions and erratic winds, the Albuquerque Journal reported.

Crews on Tuesday scrambled to knock on doors of residents living nearby, urging them to leave. Local health authorities also issued a health alert, warning that smoke from the wildfire could potentially trigger asthma or other respiratory diseases.

Dozens of buildings have been burned down and several forest roads closed. Authorities have deployed more than 600 firefighters and helicopters to contain the fire. They were trying to confine it by using bulldozers to build containment lines.

Officials could not immediately say how many families were affected by the wildfire and how long it will take to contain it. Endi

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