At Redrock, where the Gila River averages a width of 5 to 6 feet, a width of nearly 1 mile was observed during this event. Severe damage was sustained to roads, trails and campgrounds in the Gila Wilderness area. Many smaller streams ran over and the extensive flooding washed out bridges, inundated farmland, with considerable loss to unharvested crops, and isolated communities. While the record crest at the Gila River near Gila was recorded in the September 1941 event, the third highest recorded crest occurred on December 18, 1978. The warm rain melted snowpack and caused floods in and near the high terrain areas of southwest and south central New Mexico.įlooding with recurrence intervals of more than 100 years occurred on the Gila River above the San Francisco River. For New Mexico and Arizona, the most damaging event occurred on December 18-19, 1978, when an early season rain event across southern New Mexico produced the heaviest and most extensive rainfall of the period. The cool season from November 1978 from March of 1979 saw a series of upper level low pressure centers develop off the west coast near Baja California that subsequently produced frequent periods of widespread precipitation in Arizona and western New Mexico. +Rain on Snow Event, December 18-19, 1978 The Philmont Scout Ranch sustained significant damage Urban damage in Raton, Cimarron and Springer was substantial. Agricultural damages included the loss of crops, irrigation systems and livestock. The Philmont Scout Ranch sustained significant damage bridges and roads washed out, and 10, 000 Boy Scouts were stranded in various nearby communities. Property damage in New Mexico was estimated to be tens of millions of dollars. Another 28 fatalities occurred just to the north in Colorado. Two mean died when their truck was swept down Cow Creek south of Raton. On June 17, the peak discharge of the Vermejo River near Dawson was 12,600 ft3/s (a crest of 15.25 feet), which still stands as the peak discharge of record at that station as of 2013. Stream flow records indicate that this flood had a recurrence interval greater than 100 years in many areas across eastern New Mexico. Highways 64 and 85 near Cimarron, Raton and Springer was exceeded. The capacity of every culvert and bridge on U.S. Runoff from tributary waters of the Canadian river caused most of the flood fames, washing out fences, culvers, bridges and roads. The level of the Conchas Reservoir increased another 16 feet. On June 16 and 17, an unusually cold and deep closed low aloft combined with low level upslope flow across portions of eastern New Mexico and the east slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, resulted in a flood of record for tributaries of the Canadian River. The level of the Conchas Reservoirs rose over 11 feet during the overnight period. Isolated convection produced locally heavy rain in Union and Harding counties on June 14 with a dramatic increase in runoff on the Canadian River. The June 1965 flood event in northeast New Mexico was preceded by an unusually wet spring. +June 14-17, 1965, Eastern Plains River Flood This photo depicts a flooded cabin along the Rio Ruidoso in the village of Ruidoso, where 15 cabins were destroyed or damaged. Damage to farms and irrigation systems threatened the livelihood of many areas. In Albuquerque, a major gas line was cut, disrupting service for 10 days. In Roswell, every street was washed away and numerous bridges were destroyed. Across the state, extensive road and bridge damage was reported. Along the Gila River, 15 people lost their lives and property damages exceeded $2 million. The Carlsbad area was hardest hit, with 11.33 inches of rain in a 24-hour period, causing 11 fatalities on September 20.įrom September 27-29, a combination of the remnants of Tropical Storm #4 and a strong cold front produced another round of heavy precipitation that favored southwestern portions of the state. From September 20-22, the remnants of a tropical storm (TS #2) supported upslope flow and heavy precipitation across the eastern third of the state. While there were two periods of significant flooding that year, in May and September, much of the state was ravaged by back-to-back multi-day precipitation events in late September. The statewide precipitation of 27.06 inches exceeded the long-term average by 13.65 inches. The wettest year on record for New Mexico is 1941.
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