NWS Albuquerque - 2021 Annual Highlights

#1 | May 17th

On most severe weather days, the action starts early in the afternoon. That was not so on May 17th. A weak boundary draped across the Rio Grande Valley was a focus for landspouts during the morning hours. At least 3 landspouts were reported from near Kewa Pueblo south toward Abo. Given the high cloud bases, these landspout tornadoes were seen from far distances and caused quite a commotion. Fortunately, no known damage occurred from these tornadoes, but other storms produced abundant amounts of hail in and around Santa Fe. Additional storms formed early in the afternoon and shifted northeastward across much of the plains. Storms initially had a hail threat, but transitioned into a strong wind threat as they moved across the northeast plains. A few storms produced supercellular tornadoes as well, including near Obar (in Quay County) and Melrose (in Roosevelt County). The tornado near Melrose was very close to the Cannon AFB radar allowing for a close look at what appeared to be a low-precipitation supercell. 

#2 | May 28th

May 28th was one of the most active days of the year. It started around 4 am MDT when quarter to golf ball size hail occurred near Forrest in Quay County. By early afternoon, additional thunderstorms erupted over Colfax and San Miguel counties. One storm went on to produce twin tornadoes near Maxwell, though most photos only captured one of the two. One tornado was a landspout, while the other was a mesocyclonic, or supercellular, tornado. Storms continued to become more numerous through the afternoon and evening hours. Lincoln, Chaves, Curry and Roosevelt counties were especially hard hit with hail and damaging wind gusts. Hail up to 3 inches in diameter was reported on Highway 285 south of Roswell, golf ball size hail was reported in Portales, while damaging winds knocked down power poles in parts of Clovis and west of Hagerman. Another short-lived tornado also occurred north of Arabela and this storm also produced 2 inch diameter hail. It was a long afternoon and evening of severe weather that ravaged much of eastern NM.

#3 | May 30th - 31st

A fresh recharge in moisture, north to south steering flow with abundant shear and instability led to the development of numerous showers and storms during the early to mid afternoon hours on July 31st. Several of these storms were strong to severe as they progressed southward across the eastern plains and through the Rio Grande Valley. A storm near Las Vegas dumped hail up to the size of golf balls with very heavy rainfall and strong winds. Another storm moved south across Interstate 25 near San Jose and produced quarter size hail. Storms that developed over the Jemez Mountains moved south through Cochiti Pueblo with quarter size hail before blasting through the Albuquerque metro area with damaging winds and heavy rainfall. Ruidoso also experienced severe weather with quarter size hail and heavy rainfall. Minor flooding was reported in many areas as well. Swift runoff into the urban drainage system in Albuquerque washed two individuals down the Embudo Arroyo. One individual was rescued, however, the other died in the flood waters.

#3 | May 30th - 31st (continued)

During the evening of the 30th a levee broke west of the Roswell Airport, unable to handle the water combining with water racing downhill from the mountains to the west. This resulted in several water rescues and inundated homes. Highway 285 was reported to be under 3 to 4 feet of water. Flooding continued into May 31st when Roswell picked up an additional 1.65” of rainfall, bringing the two-day total to 4.68” at the Roswell Airport. This was the 9th highest two-day rainfall amount on record, and equaled the amount of rainfall that fell from March 13, 2020 - May 29, 2021. Though the flooding was the main story, these same storms produced large hail and showed occasional rotation.

Video by: Karen Sanders (Chaves County Emergency Manager) - Areal flood survey in Roswell, June 1st

#3 | May 30th - 31st (continued)

Other storms produced tornadoes during the afternoon of May 30th, including one near San Jon and another near Moses. The action started quickly again on the 31st with a pair of landspouts reported in Socorro County. Up to quarter size hail was also reported in the Albuquerque metro area during the afternoon.

#4 | June 12th

Severe thunderstorms erupted just east of the Central Mountain Chain during the afternoon of June 12th. After dropping 2 inch hail in Las Vegas, one storm continued to propagate southeastward toward San Augustin and became quite photogenic. Several storm chasers snapped photos of a beautiful classic supercell that went on to produce a tornado. The tornado path was just over 4.5 miles long and occurred in an uninhabited area within a series of river and/or arroyo beds where there was plenty of vegetation, mainly juniper. It was this vegetation that enabled NWS forecasters to find the damage path in Sentinel-2 satellite data. Sentinel-2 is a collection of two polar orbiting satellites with the goal of monitoring variability in land surface conditions with high resolution. The storms continued to shift east-southeast through the evening, producing periods of heavy rain, hail and strong winds as they tracked across east-central NM.

#4 | June 12th (continued)

Video of the supercell tornado east of Las Vegas in rural San Miguel County on June 12th.

Video by: Rob Hall

#5 | July 11th

Storms developed over the higher terrain of west central and south central New Mexico before shifting southward through the afternoon. Large hail and flooding plagued the Roswell area while large hail and damaging wind gusts plagued much of Otero County. Golf ball size hail was reported near Cloudcroft and covered the ground near Boles Acres. Storms became more of a hail threat later in the evening as they crossed Doña Ana County. Damaging wind speeds in excess of 60 and 70 mph were reported near Santa Teresa, Las Cruces, and White Sands. In fact, large trees were blown down across the New Mexico State University campus. The strongest wind speed of the day was a whopping 92 mph east-northeast of Doña Ana. Flash flooding also closed a portion of U.S. Highway 70.

Honorable Mentions

Other localized but impactful severe weather events that occurred in 2021.

Severe Weather Stats

These are the rankings of severe weather reports in 2021.

#1 | March 14th and 16th - Strong Winds and Blowing Dust

A very dynamic storm system impacted New Mexico March 13-14, bringing a variety of weather hazards to the state. While snow was piling up across the northern mountains, a potent upper level jet resulted in strong winds across the eastern plains. On Saturday evening, dust from the playas in Mexico was being lofted and transported northward (hot pink color in the satellite image in lower right corner). What was particularly unique about this event, this dust was transported through New Mexico and into Colorado, and mixed with the heavy snow (see tweet from NWS Boulder).

#1 | March 14th and 16th - Strong Winds and Blowing Dust

Another potent system impacted the state on March 16. While snowfall totals were not as impressive, it did bring another round of strong to damaging winds, reduced visibilities due to blowing dust as well as blizzard conditions to the northeast plains. The image to the right shows the poor visibility in the Roswell area. In fact, visibility was so poor, the NMDOT reported NM Route 2 closed in all directions from Mile Marker 17-19 (near Hagerman, NM), and the relief route was closed in all directions between Brasher Rd. and Sunset Ave. in the Roswell area. Visibility dropped to under one mile at times.

Photo by: @JennyKnobZoe - Roswell dust storm, March 16th

#1 | March 14th and 16th - Strong Winds and Blowing Dust

The table to the right shows the peak gusts in mph from March 16th.

#2 | March 23rd - 24th - Late Season Winter Storm

An upper level storm system strengthened over the Great Basin region, then migrated eastward into the Land of Enchantment. The greatest snowfall accumulations were noted in the northern and western high terrain, as typical in these events, however a backdoor front also created upslope flow along the eastern slopes of the central mountains and adjacent highlands. This is where the greatest impacts were felt, particularly along the Interstate 40 corridor in eastern NM. 

#2 | March 23rd - 24th - Late Season Winter Storm (continued)

Rapidly changing weather conditions from the Estancia Valley to the Texas border were noted, and this was even evident in the snowfall accumulation map. Snow rates increased considerably across western Guadalupe County, creating rather slick road conditions. Unfortunately, a major accident involving 39 vehicles east of Moriarty and west of Santa Rosa led to several injuries and the closure of the interstate. Meanwhile, as the cold front pushed through the central mountain chain, very strong gap winds were observed in the Rio Grande Valley. While significant snowfall didn’t occur in the ABQ area, the Sunport measured a peak wind gust of 68 mph, resulting in numerous reports of downed trees and power outages.

Photo by: NM State Police - Multi-vehicle accident on I-40 near MM243, March 24th

#2 | March 23rd - 24th - Late Season Winter Storm (continued)

Select high snow totals through northern and central NM from this winter storm.

#3 | April 26th - Three Rivers Wildfire

A strengthening low-pressure system was tracking across the western U.S., allowing for windy and dry conditions to impact parts of New Mexico. Unfortunately, the Three Rivers Wildfire quickly developed in the Lincoln National Forest during the mid-morning hours.

Photo by: Will Jones

#3 | April 26th - Three Rivers Wildfire (continued)

Initial conditions were rather favorable for rapid growth and spread, and by 2pm MDT, smoke was already spreading into parts of Texas (image to right). According to InciWeb (an interagency online resource), the fire grew to over 6,000 acres in size within 24 hours and approximately 250 citizens were impacted by evacuations in the surrounding areas.

#3 | April 26th - Three Rivers Wildfire (continued)

The table to the upper left depicts some of the peak wind gusts and minimum afternoon humidity on April 26. Winds remained rather strong to severe on Tuesday afternoon (72 mph wind gusts southeast of Corona!), allowing for additional fire growth and downstream smoke impacts. What made this event unique was that snow fell on the fire Wednesday night and Thursday morning, serving beneficial for containment activities. The Three Rivers Wildfire eventually migrated into the Little Bear Fire burn scar of 2012, which helped decrease fire activity.

#4 | July - Luna Burn Scar Flash Flooding

The Luna burn scar was a late season wildfire that began Oct. 17, 2020, approximately two miles from Chacon, NM, or 15 miles from Mora. Hydrologic impacts were not a concern in 2020; however, it proved to be a significant problem for burn scar flash flooding in 2021, especially during the active month of July. Two events were reported on July 27th and 31st. Only a quarter of one inch of rain in under one hour resulted in building damage along Luna Creek in Luna Canyon on the 27th. For the last day of the month, a CoCoRaHS observer reported flash flooding along Luna Creek and Luna Canyon Road and other structures being damaged.

Video by: Polly Mullen - Luna burn scar flash flooding July 27th

#4 | July - Luna Burn Scar Flash Flooding (continued)

Flash flood events were reported on July 2nd, 6th, 13th, 27th, and 31st. Many were the result of under an inch of rainfall falling over the burn scar over a short period of time.

July 2nd - Trained spotters reported 30-45 minutes of heavy rainfall over the burn scar that resulted in twelve inches of mud and debris flows, rapidly moving water, and displaced boulders blocking a residential driveway.

July 6th - Just under an inch of heavy rain produced fast-moving water and debris flows washing out large boulders and downed trees near Luna Canyon Road, making it impassable.

July 13th - Water and debris destroyed one bridge and several roads became impassable. A CoCoRaHS observer near Chacon reported the Luna Creek, normally a few feet wide, bring 100 yards wide! Campsites on private land were demolished. The NM Governor declared a state of emergency in Mora County for the significant flooding.

Photo by: Polly Mullen

#5 | July 6th - Belen Flash Flooding

Between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. MDT on July 6, a cluster of thunderstorms developed north of Belen, NM, and moved south over the area. These storms produced a broad area of 1.5” to 2” of rainfall over the two hour period, including two inches at the Belen Airport. The runoff was too much for the Highline Canal that already contained water from previous rains on the day prior. The Highline Canal breached and flood waters moved down Delgado Street in Belen towards Main Street from the high school and nearby cemetery. This caused several structures including homes and businesses to flood between 10 p.m. and midnight.  

Photo by: Sarah Gillen - Flooding on Main Street in Belen, NM

#5 | July 6th - Belen Flash Flooding (continued)

Recovery efforts went well into the night with shelters being opened and clean-up lasting several days. The NM Governor signed an executive order declaring a State of Emergency in Valencia County due to the flooding.

Photo by: Sarah Gillen - Highline Canal Breach

#6 | August 14th - Rio Peñasco Flooding

A very slow storm system brought several days of rain to southern NM, including reports of one to over three inches of rain over Otero County. The runoff worked its way into streams over southwest Chaves County, including the normally dry Rio Peñasco where a gauge near Dunken, NM peaked at 9.89 feet near midnight on August 14th. After receding, it peaked again to 16.8 feet on August 16th! While widespread or significant damage was not reported, it is an excellent reminder to not drive through flooded roads and/or camp along water channels. Always remember: "Turn Around Don't Drown!"

Photo by: Wendell Malone - Rio Peñasco flooding

#7 | December 15th - Wind Storm

One of the strongest and more widespread wind events of 2021 impacted northern and central New Mexico from the early morning through afternoon hours on Wednesday, Dec. 15th. An unusually strong jetstream coupled with a potent cold front brought very strong to damaging winds from the Arizona border to the Oklahoma and Texas State Line.  

Photo by: Holly Spellman shared on twitter via Grant Tosterud - St. Francis Cathedral wind damage

#7 | December 15th - Wind Storm (continued)

Some of the severe wind gusts were associated with a broken line of thunderstorms that formed along the cold front. Blown sheds, large downed trees on to homes and businesses, and numerous power outages were reported throughout the region, including Gallup, Santa Fe, Jemez Springs, Red River, Albuquerque, Isleta Pueblo, Taos, Las Vegas, La Cienega, Greenville, and Amistad.

Photo by: Precision Approach - Planes flipped at the Santa Fe Airport.

The City of Albuquerque Office of Emergency Management is interested in having greater situational awareness of potential flood hazards. Specifically, they requested routine daily forecasts for the Rio Grande at Albuquerque. However, as the flows at Albuquerque are strongly influenced by human controls upstream we identified two more points where routine daily forecasts would be helpful.  

In coordination with Southern Region and the West Gulf River Forecast Center we upgraded the following forecast points to daily forecasts.

The chart below illustrates the progression of drought within New Mexico dating back to 2000. The coverage of exceptional drought conditions was greatest in 2011-2012 and during 2020-2021.

The chart below illustrates the progression of drought within NM during 2021 for the 5 drought categories. Greater than 50% of the state was in the worse category, exceptional drought, through May 2021.

Exceptional drought covered much of the state from January to May until improvements occurred over the summer months. Conditions began deteriorating by late fall as above normal temperatures and very dry conditions persisted through early winter. 

Percent of median monthly snow water equivalent (SWE) since 2000 for NM (1981-2010 climatology). The past 22 seasons have seen considerable variability with overall below median snowpack most years. Of the 133 months illustrated, only 33% have seen above median SWE. The expansive drought from 2010 to 2015 resulted in significant drawdown of reservoirs with any modest recovery still struggling after the atrocious 2017-2018 season.  

This chart focuses on the 2018 – 2021 snow water equivalent (SWE). The 2017 - 2018 season was practically snow-free most of the time in many areas. The following 2018 - 2019 season made a big comeback with close to median snowpack through the entire season. 2019 - 2020 started out great then trailed off by late spring. 2020 - 2021 was acceptable while the 2021 - 2022 season is already off to a poor start. At this point, significant reservoir recovery will require several back-to-back years of robust snowfall.

2020 - 2021 Monthly Snow Pack

The seasonal peak occurred February 18, 2021

2020 - 2021 Monthly Snowpack

A secondary peak occurred March 27, 2021

The charts to the right show the median daily discharge for the time period listed (shaded in blue) at select river gages compared to the 2021 discharge (orange line). The area under the curve is equivalent to the overall volume of water passing by the gage throughout the season. A “skinnier” discharge curve like 2021 indicated a much lower volume of water passed by the gage compared to the long-term median. A secondary peak was observed in late July during the heart of the active 2021 monsoon season.

Here are the median daily discharges for the time period listed (shaded in blue) at select river gages compared to the 2021 discharge (orange line).

Reservoir storage in New Mexico trended slightly higher in early 2021 then fell sharply by the end of the year. The maximum value observed in 2021 was 1863 kAF in June and the minimum value was 1583 kAF in September. The lowest value observed since 2000 was 1214 kAF in November 2003.

Reservoir storage in New Mexico trended lower through 2021. Values near 40% of average are similar to some of the lowest levels that occurred in 2018-2019, 2013, and during the early 2000s. The lowest value observed since 2000 was 36% in September 2013.

Notable rises on rivers and tributaries

Notable rises on rivers and tributaries

Albuquerque records continued...

Clayton records tied or broken.

Roswell records tied or broken.

 February 2021 

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February 2021 temperatures and precipitation was quite varied across New Mexico. Temperatures were near to above normal in the west, near to below normal in central areas, and well below normal in the east, especially as you get closer to the Texas border. Precipitation was mostly near to below normal, but there were small areas of above normal precipitation, mainly in central areas.

Strong winds buffeted New Mexico on the 3rd and 4th. The most impressive series of storms this winter struck on the 13th – 18th with 3 storms piling up the snow. During this time record smashing cold air settled over New Mexico.  

Photo by: Gregory North - Santa Fe snowfall February 16th

 March 2021 

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March 2021 was wetter than normal in the northeast quarter of the state, with pockets of near to above normal precipitation in central New Mexico. The rest of the state was drier than normal. Temperatures were near to below normal statewide, except a little above normal in the southeast.

March was highlighted by two major storms, one on the 16th, the other March 23rd through 24th. They were very similar with widespread light to moderate snow and areas of heavy snow. Strong to high winds with some damage occurred with both storms. High winds slammed NM on the 14th.   

Photo shared by: Mark Ronchetti - Downed tree at Spain and Juan Tabo in Albuquerque, March 24th

 April 2021 

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April 2021 was drier to much drier than normal statewide. Temperatures varied across the state with above normal in the west, near normal central and below normal in the east.

Not much precipitation fell on the parched ground of New Mexico. Instead, wind was the primary focus for weather in April – which it often is. Strong to high winds buffeted the state on the 6th, 23rd and 26th.

Photo by: Will Jones - Three Rivers Fire northwest of Ruidoso

 May 2021 

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May 2021 was warmer than normal in the west and central areas, and near normal in the east. Precipitation ranged from well below normal in the southwest to well above normal in the northeast! Severe weather was the theme for May, especially over the last week of the month. 

Photo by: Crystal Forni - Landspout near Abo, May 17th

 June 2021 

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June 2021 was a crazy month with record high temperatures during the first half of the month. The 12th was an active day with high winds and wind damage and very large hail.

High winds also occurred on most of the days between the 19th and 24th. The monsoon set in quickly over the last few days of the month, saving us from another exceptionally dry month. In fact, there was so much rain in southeast New Mexico the month ended with precipitation way above normal! The rest of the state was near to above normal, except below normal in the far northeast and far west. 

Video by: Rob Hall - Tornado east of Las Vegas, June 12th

 July 2021 

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July 2021 was wet. How wet? Well, much of central and parts of southeast New Mexico received 300 to 500 percent of their normal July rain! The rest of the state was mostly above normal, with near normal in parts of the northwest and southwest. No place was significantly below normal. Roswell kept up it’s hope for a record rainfall in 2021, totaling 2.65 inches for July, or 0.88 inches above normal. It’s the 5th wettest year through the first 7 months. The yearly total of 13.72 inches is already well above the normal annual rainfall of 11.63. Temperatures were not as extreme as the precipitation, with above normal temperatures in the northwest and below normal in the southeast. In between was a band of near normal temperatures (see slides below). 

Video by: Logan Hawkins - Apache Creek flooding in Fitzgerald Cienega

 August 2021 

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August 2021 was in sharp contrast to July, with the monsoon less active overall. Even though central and southern portions of New Mexico received near to above normal precipitation, there was little in the way of flash flooding or severe weather. The middle of the month was most active, with several reports of flash flooding from the 12th through 15th. 

Video by: Chief Vega of the San Juan County Fire Department - Aztec flooding, August 15th

 September 2021 

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September 2021 was warmer to much warmer than normal statewide! Precipitation was near to below normal in the west, and below to well below normal in central and eastern areas. While early and late September was wet, the bulk of the month was dry and very warm, including many record high temperatures.

 October 2021 

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October 2021 was drier than normal for most locations. Temperatures were more varied with below normal readings in the west, near normal central, and above normal temperatures in the east. There were only two storms that impacted the state, one on the 1st and the other on the 10th. The first storm delivered widespread rain and high mountain snow, the second storm brought rain, and isolated hail and high winds.

Photo by: NWS Albuquerque - Sunset at the office

 November 2021 

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November 2021 was much warmer and drier than normal. It was the 2nd warmest and 16th driest November on record. A decent rain and snow producing storm on the 23rd to 24th was the only weather impacts of the month. Record-breaking high temperatures were common early in the month. 

Photo by: Sandia Peak Tram - Light snow at the Sandia Peak tram