Flash Flood — Socorro, New Mexico

2021-07-23 · near Bernardo, Socorro, New Mexico

Event narrative

Strong thunderstorms that moved southwest through Socorro County brought heavy rain with reports of one to two inches. This resulted in widespread flooding across central Socorro County. The La Joya area was especially impacted with additional damage to the La Joya Acequia. A large section of the concrete ditch system north of La Joya was severely damaged, and several ditches and drains were filled with silt. All of the arroyos in the La Joya area flooded which washed away several of the arroyo banks and caused additional damage. The Rio Puerco River created to 17.75 feet Friday evening which was its highest level since 2013. Homes in the Contreras area were surrounded by flood water. Damages are estimated.

Wider weather episode

A slow-moving low pressure system continued to track westward across southern New Mexico on July 23, 2021, as an area of high pressure remained centered over the Four Corners. An abundant amount of atmospheric moisture remained in place across central and western New Mexico, and with needed lift from the low pressure system, numerous thunderstorms impacted the area. Soils across western New Mexico were saturated from the previous day's convection which exacerbated flash flooding conditions as torrential rainfall fell across the area. Rainfall estimates of two to four inches prompted numerous Flash Flood Warnings across western and central New Mexico. Severe weather was also a concern with baseball size hail reported in Torrance County and a landspout tornado even reported on the westside of Albuquerque.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (34.4025, -106.8745)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 962929. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.