Flash Flood — Torrance, New Mexico

2022-08-03 · near Tajique, Torrance, New Mexico

Event narrative

Heavy rain in the Tajique area caused flash flooding along New Mexico State Road 55, rendering it impassable as crews worked to clear water and debris off the roadway. No damages were known.

Wider weather episode

While the high pressure centered itself over New Mexico, it was still a very active day on August 3, 2022, thanks to a backdoor front that moved through eastern New Mexico earlier in the day. This front helped to replinish moisture in the area while upslope flow helped to initiate a greater number of thunderstorms compared to the previous day. Thunderstorms developed by late morning across the typical high terrain areas before becoming more widespread across much of northern and central New Mexico as the day progressed. Heavy rain was common with these thunderstorms, and this resulted in flash flooding, especially on the Calf Canyon burn scar.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (34.7600, -106.2200)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1035415. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.