Flash Flood — Mckinley, New Mexico

2019-07-25 · near Prewitt, Mckinley, New Mexico

Event narrative

NM-412 south of Prewitt to Bluewater Lake was closed due to swift flood waters crossing the roadway.

Wider weather episode

Abundant moisture combined with strong afternoon heating beneath an upper level high over southwestern New Mexico to produce numerous showers and thunderstorms with heavy rainfall on July 25, 2019. Storms first developed over the northern and western high terrain during the early afternoon hours before moving southward into nearby highlands and valleys through the afternoon. Rainfall rates of two inches per hour were common with several of these storms, resulting in many reports of minor flooding. The most significant impacts were reported around Bluewater Lake and Los Alamos where swift flowing water and debris resulted in some road closures.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.3300, -108.0700)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 830034. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.