Drought — Westcentral Mountains, New Mexico

2003-03-01 · Westcentral Mountains, New Mexico

Wider weather episode

Periodic snows continued throughout the month providing some additional relief from long term drought conditions, except for northwest areas of the state which remained drier. Albuquerque enjoyed a six day wet spell that ended about the 21st which yielded enough rain (1.84 inches) to make the month the 5th wettest March on record. While the increase in snow pack was welcome, amounts were not yet deep enough to provide long term hydrologic drought relief and to significantly reverse the outlook for marginal reservior storage across the state. As the string of wet days ended on the 21st, brief thunderstorms formed with small hail from Albuquerque east to Tucumcari and along the Interstate 25 corridor between Raton and Clayton. At least three separate small storms dumped copious small hall less than one half inch in diameter in narrow swaths across Interstate 25 south of Wagon Mound and near Tecolote southwest of Las Vegas, and also across Interstate 40 just east of Tucumcari. Motorists sped into the icy conditions with numerous accidents the result. A 64 year old female died (indirect) and her 69 year old husband was injuried (indirect) in a roll over wreck south of Wagon Mound. A 66 year old man and his 59 year old wife both died (indirect) near Tucumcari when their vehicle slid off the road and struck a pole.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5347517. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.