Drought in Chaves County Plains, New Mexico

Severe drought persisted across the entire zone.

The month of May saw below normal precipitation through the Four Corners region and portions of the central highlands of New Mexico, while areas along the Rio Grande Valley, southwestern, and eastern NM saw near to above normal precipitation. Mean temperatures trended near to slightly above normal through western NM and near to slightly below normal across eastern NM. This led to a modest expansion of extreme drought conditions across western NM and portions of the eastern plains of NM along the TX border. Gaps of severe drought through the northern mountains were filled in. Due to ongoing drought conditions and record low snowpack the previous winter, the Rio Grande dried up through the Albuquerque metro area.