A powerful storm moved into California on the 13th and slowly advanced east into northern New Mexico on the 15th. While it did weaken as it headed east, it still carried quite a punch as high winds were reported over much the state, but especially from the north and central mountains eastward to the Texas border where these regions saw an extended period of 35 to 45 mph sustained winds or gusts…
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.
The episode as NWS ABQ wrote it up.
A powerful storm moved into California on the 13th and slowly advanced east into northern New Mexico on the 15th. While it did weaken as it headed east, it still carried quite a punch as high winds were reported over much the state, but especially from the north and central mountains eastward to the Texas border where these regions saw an extended period of 35 to 45 mph sustained winds or gusts of 60 to 70 mph. Downslope winds on the east side of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains were particularly strong from near Angel Fire south to near Las Vegas. Cooperative observers near Gascon reported some the worst winds they had ever experienced with some 5000 to 8000 trees uprooted over an area of western Mora County. While some trees toppled because the ground was soft from snow melt, many were reported as twisted and snapped off 10 to 20 feet above ground with no discrimination between pine, fir, spruce or aspen. Falling trees damaged grazing allotment cross fencing in numerous places.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Albuquerque, NM wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 15, 1:20 PM MST, 4 hours 40 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
220 PM MDT TUE APR 15 2003
WIND ADV/HWW WORKING OUT WELL. WILL REISSUE NPW AND KEEP IT GOING
THRU 03Z. CURRENT SYSTEM WILL ACCELERATE NORTHEASTWARD OUT OF CWA.
PRECIP WILL END FROM THE SOUTH AND WEST DURING THE AFTN AND EVENING.
WINDS TO GRADUALLY DIE DOWN THROUGH THE NIGHT. WILL PROBABLY BE VERY
LATE BEFORE WINDS GO LIGHT AND VARIABLE IN THE FAR WEST. EVEN AT
GALLUP WHICH ALMOST ALWAYS DECOUPLES. BREEZY TO WINDY LASTING ALL
NIGHT REST OF CWA.
NEXT SHORTWAVE IS LOOKING MORE AND MORE LIKE THE CURRENT SYSTEM. H5
PATTERN SIMILAR WITH STRONG UPPER JET MAX PROGGED TO COME AROUND THE
BASE OF THE TROUGH AND TAKE AIM AT ABQ CWA. SERIOUS QUESTIONS ABOUT
TIMING AND MOISTURE OF NEXT SYSTEM. ETA NOW MUCH FASTER THAN
YESTERDAY/S RUNS. AVN CAME IN FASTER TOO...BUT NOT NEARLY AS FAST AS
ETA. MODELS ARENT SHOWING A LOT OF MID LEVEL MOISTURE AHEAD OF THIS
NEXT SYSTEM. I EXPECT MORE IN A PATTERN LIKE THAT. MAYBE IT/S GOING
TO HAPPEN TOO QUICKLY AFTER THE CURRENT STORM. ANYWAYS...I CHANGED
THE PRECIP FCST...BUT WILL HOLD OFF ON ADDING THUNDER OR SUBSTANTIAL
INCREASES IN WIND UNTIL THERE IS A BETTER HANDLE ON TIMING...TRACK
AND MOISTURE. JWS
ABQ UE 038/072 048/071 041 46000
SAF BE 030/068 038/069 034 46000
TCC UE 043/075 042/073 044 46000
.ABQ...HIGH WIND WARNING THRU 03Z NMZ005>007-010>013-016>021-026-
...WIND ADVISORY THRU 03Z NMZ001>004-008-009-014-015-NMZ001>021-026-161130- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 530 AM MDT TUE APR 15 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH AND CENTRAL NEW MEXICO. .DAY ONE...TODAY HIGH WINDS WILL AFFECT THE AREA FROM MIDDAY THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS. WIND GUSTS OF 50 TO 60 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE EASTERN PLAINS AND SOUTH. THE STRONG WINDS ARE THE RESULT OF AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH AND ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT WHICH WILL MOVE ACROSS THE STATE LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT. IN ADDITION TO THE WIND... SCATTERED SHOWERS...HIGH MOUNTAIN SNOW SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL FREQUENT NORTHERN AREAS DURING THE AFTERNOON WHILE SHOWERS END ACROSS THE SOUTH BEFORE NOON. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO CALL 1-888-386-7637 WITH REPORTS OF DAMAGE ASSOCIATED WITH THE EXPECTED HIGH WINDS. KJ
14 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, April 2003
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: 5354113, 5354114, 5354115, 5354116, 5354117, 5354118, 5354119, 5354120, 5354121, 5354168, 5354169, 5354430, 5354431, 5354432.