Thunderstorm Wind in Valencia County, New Mexico

Thunderstorm outflow wind gusts up to 60 mph were reported in Los Lunas.

A potent upper level storm system approaching New Mexico from the west interacted with deep moisture and very unstable conditions along a sharp dryline over eastern New Mexico on May 26, 2019. Dry showers and thunderstorms with strong downburst winds first developed along the Continental Divide by late morning before marching east into the Rio Grande Valley through the afternoon. Several locations within the Rio Grande Valley reported wind gusts in excess of 60 mph, including Los Lunas, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Taos. Wind damage was also reported as this activity moved across the central mountain chain into the Estancia Valley. Meanwhile, showers and thunderstorms fired up along the dryline in eastern New Mexico then quickly became severe with large hail, high winds, and several tornados. A violent supercell thunderstorm that moved through Union County during the late afternoon produced at least two tornadoes and three inch hail. Severe thunderstorms then evolved into a quasi-linear convective system over the Caprock region and resulted in a large area of high winds and large hail. Several more tornadoes developed along the southern edge of this line, including a spectacular wedge tornado near Dora. In addition to all the severe thunderstorms that impacted the region, many areas outside of thunderstorm activity in central and western New Mexico also reported strong southwest winds with gusts of 50 to 60 mph.