Tornado, Chaves
- When
- May 20, 2:25 PM MST to 2:30 PM MST
- Where
- Chaves County, Roswell
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.1 mi
- Path width
- 10 yd
- Coordinates
- 33.380, -104.520
Tornadoes and Hail in New Mexico, May 20, 1994
5 hail, 4 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 9
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
Event by event
5 hail, 4 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail, Chaves
- When
- May 20, 2:40 PM MST to 3:00 PM MST
- Where
- Chaves County, Roswell
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 33.363, -104.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Tornado, Chaves
- When
- May 20, 2:45 PM MST
- Where
- Chaves County, Roswell
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.1 mi
- Path width
- 10 yd
- Coordinates
- 33.300, -104.520
Hail, Eddy
- When
- May 20, 3:00 PM MST
- Where
- Eddy County, Artesia
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Coordinates
- 32.472, -104.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A severe thunderstorm produced several brief tornadoes between Roswell and Artesia and a large volume of hail across Chaves and Eddy Counties. A tornado was observed by a retired meteorologist on the southwest edge of Roswell. Another tornado barely missed the state prison south of Roswell. Two more tornadoes were observed by a SKYWARN spotter southwest and southeast of Artesia. Hail drifts reached 6 to 24 inches deep at Hagerman and Artesia. Damage due mainly to thunderstorm wind and hail was limited to trees, small sheds, and crops.
Hail, Chaves
- When
- May 20, 3:00 PM MST to 3:30 PM MST
- Where
- Chaves County, Hagerman
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 33.363, -104.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Chaves
- When
- May 20, 3:00 PM MST
- Where
- Chaves County, Midway
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 33.363, -104.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Tornado, Eddy
- When
- May 20, 3:05 PM MST
- Where
- Eddy County, Artesia
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.1 mi
- Path width
- 10 yd
- Coordinates
- 32.472, -104.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A severe thunderstorm produced several brief tornadoes between Roswell and Artesia and a large volume of hail across Chaves and Eddy Counties. A tornado was observed by a retired meteorologist on the southwest edge of Roswell. Another tornado barely missed the state prison south of Roswell. Two more tornadoes were observed by a SKYWARN spotter southwest and southeast of Artesia. Hail drifts reached 6 to 24 inches deep at Hagerman and Artesia. Damage due mainly to thunderstorm wind and hail was limited to trees, small sheds, and crops.
Tornado, Eddy
- When
- May 20, 3:25 PM MST
- Where
- Eddy County, Artesia
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.3 mi
- Path width
- 100 yd
- Coordinates
- 32.780, -104.270
A severe thunderstorm produced several brief tornadoes between Roswell and Artesia and a large volume of hail across Chaves and Eddy Counties. A tornado was observed by a retired meteorologist on the southwest edge of Roswell. Another tornado barely missed the state prison south of Roswell. Two more tornadoes were observed by a SKYWARN spotter southwest and southeast of Artesia. Hail drifts reached 6 to 24 inches deep at Hagerman and Artesia. Damage due mainly to thunderstorm wind and hail was limited to trees, small sheds, and crops.
Hail, Eddy
- When
- May 20, 4:30 PM MST
- Where
- Eddy County, Lakewood
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 32.472, -104.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A severe thunderstorm produced several brief tornadoes between Roswell and Artesia and a large volume of hail across Chaves and Eddy Counties. A tornado was observed by a retired meteorologist on the southwest edge of Roswell. Another tornado barely missed the state prison south of Roswell. Two more tornadoes were observed by a SKYWARN spotter southwest and southeast of Artesia. Hail drifts reached 6 to 24 inches deep at Hagerman and Artesia. Damage due mainly to thunderstorm wind and hail was limited to trees, small sheds, and crops.
What these are
- Tornado
- A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
More
Every storm in New Mexico in 1994Every state in 1994This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for New Mexico, 1994Warnings in New Mexico, May 1994
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10335488, 10335489, 10335490, 10335265, 10335491, 10335492, 10335316, 10335266, 10335267.