Deadly New Mexico flash flooding prompts dozens of rescues, sweeps house away

Flash flooding from torrential rain killed at least three people Tuesday afternoon and prompted dozens of rescues in the Ruidoso area of southern New Mexico, officials said — the same area devastated by two wildfires last year. A house was seen being carried downstream by the fast-moving water.

Late Tuesday night, the village of Ruidoso confirmed that a four-year-old girl, seven-year-old boy and  40-to-50-year old man were swept downstream and later found dead.

The village said 50-60 swift water rescues were carried out and search and rescue operations were still being conducted. Earlier, The Associated Press cited Danielle Silva of the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management as saying there were at least 85 rescues. Some people trapped in their homes and vehicles were among those brought to safety, she said.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, said in a statement Tuesday night that she “signed an emergency declaration request to get federal response teams and repair resources on the ground immediately. We’re encouraged that additional federal resources are already on the way. … We’ve watched Texas receive the federal resources they desperately needed, and Ruidoso deserves that same urgent response.”

The Rio Ruidoso, a river in Lincoln County, rose to a record-breaking 20 feet – five feet higher than the previous high-water mark, the village said. CBS News meteorologist Nikki Nolan noted that at one river gauge, water levels leaped almost 19 feet in a mere half-hour.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a statement Tuesday that the National Weather Service issued a flood watch for the South Central Mountains, including Ruidoso, at 2:46 a.m. MT. That warning was to be in effect from noon until 8 p.m. local time, NOAA said. A flash flood warning was issued for the South Fork burn scar in Lincoln County, New Mexico, at 2:12 p.m., and included a “considerable” flooding tag, which NOAA said “automatically triggers a Wireless Emergency Alert to be issued for the warned area.”

NOAA said the warning was upgraded to a flash flooding emergency about 30 minutes later.

Emergency warnings have emerged as a point of contention in the Texas flash flooding.

A video posted on social media by Ruidoso resident Kaitlyn Carpenter shows fast-moving water carrying a home down-river. Another video shows floodwaters bringing a myriad of debris down a river bank before reaching a small bridge and inundating the roadway.

Carpenter, whose art studio was swept away during a flood last year, told the AP she was riding her motorcycle through town Tuesday afternoon when the storm started to pick up and she sought shelter at the riverside Downshift Brewing Company with dozens of other people. She started to film debris rushing down the Rio Ruidoso when she spotted a house floating by with a familiar turquoise door. It belonged to the family of one of her best friends.

Her friend’s family was not in the house and is safe, she said.

“I’ve been in that house and have memories in that house, so seeing it come down the river was just pretty heartbreaking,” Carpenter told the AP. “I just couldn’t believe it.”

The area around the Rio Ruidoso and much of Lincoln County were scorched last year by wildfires, making the soil unstable and more prone to flooding. Two people died in the South Fork and Salt fires, and hundreds of homes were destroyed in June 2024.

Wildfires can significantly change the landscape, including reducing vegetation — which decreases the number of plants and roots to hold soil in place. Burn scars increase flash flooding risks for at least two years, according to the federal Burned Area Emergency Response, which assessed the damage.

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