A storm off the northern California coast on the 25th and 26th moved inland on the 27th, crossing New Mexico early on the 28th. Meanwhile, a second storm from the Pacific Northwest raced southeast across the state on the night of the 28th into the early morning hours of the 29th.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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 storm off the northern California coast on the 25th and 26th moved inland on the 27th, crossing New Mexico early on the 28th. Meanwhile, a second storm from the Pacific Northwest raced southeast across the state on the night of the 28th into the early morning hours of the 29th. The first storm pulled sub-tropical moisture north into the state and tightened the pressure gradient aloft. The second storm had less moisture to work with, but produced a few bursts of heavy snow and strong winds across northern and central New Mexico. Heavy rain in the upper Gila region of the Southwest mountains resulting in isolated flooding and flash flooding events.
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 Jan 27, 2:15 PM MST, 3 hours 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 215 PM MST SUN JAN 27 2008 .DISCUSSION... DEFINITELY SOME SUBTLE FORECAST CHALLENGES FOR THE NEXT 48 HOURS. THIS INCLUDES VARYING SNOW AND SNOW ACCUMULATION LEVELS WHICH AFFECTS VALUE ADDING WITHIN WINTER STORM HIGHLIGHTS/AMOUNTS AND ELEVATIONS/. ALSO...HOW STRONG WILL THE WIND BLOW TONIGHT AS WELL AS MONDAY AND MONDAY NIGHT. AS FAR AS TIMING...APPEARS THAT SYSTEM IS ON TRACK. PRECIPITATION ALREADY REACHING THE GROUND ACROSS LOWER ELEVATIONS OF THE WEST. THUS PRESUMABLY...SNOWING ACROSS THE HIGHER WESTERN MOUNTAIN PEAKS. PW VALUES FAIRLY HIGH WITH THE SUBTROPICAL FETCH DEPICTED ON IR IMAGERY. LOOK FOR THESE SNOW LEVELS TO GRADUALLY RAISE AS THE DAY PROGRESSES AND THE SUBTROPICAL FETCH ESTABLISHES ITSELF OVER WESTERN PORTIONS AND TO A LESSER EXTENT CENTRAL PORTIONS OF CWFA. OUTSIDE OF THE MAIN MOISTURE PLUME WILL BE SLIGHTLY LOWER SNOW LEVELS DUE TO EVAPORATIVE COOLING WITHIN THE BOUNDARY LAYER. WET BULB ZEROS WILL RISE SIGNIFICANTLY TONIGHT SO SNOWFALL AND SNOWFALL ACCUMULATION LEVELS WILL RISE ACCORDINGLY. AS FAR AS CHANGES TO THE GRIDS...NOT ALL THAT MUCH. ADJUSTED POPS SLIGHTLY HIGHER MONDAY NIGHT ACROSS THE HIGHEST TERRAIN OF THE NORTHERN AND WESTERN MOUNTAINS. ALSO VALUE ADDED TO SKY COVER GRIDS ACCORDINGLY. FEELING MORE CONFIDENT ABOUT THE SECOND PIECE OF ENERGY WHICH WILL BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE MAIN SURFACE TO MID LEVEL COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE. THIS IS WHEN SNOW LEVELS WILL LOWER QUITE CONSIDERABLY. EXPECT THE UPPER LEVEL COLD FRONT TO TRAVERSE OVER THE STATE IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE SUBTROPICAL FETCH TRANSLATION...MONDAY MORNING. THIS IS WHEN MAIN QPF WILL OCCUR ACROSS CWFA. SIGNIFICANT DRY SLOT WILL TAKE AIM ACROSS SOUTHERN AND EASTERN AREAS AS THE DAY PROGRESSES ON MONDAY AND WILL LIMIT PRECIP ACROSS THE HIGHER MOUNTAINS RIDGES THANKS TO OROGRAPHIC EFFECT. ALSO MADE SOME TWEAKS TO THE MAX TEMP GRID FOR MONDAY...GOING WITH HIGH END OF GUIDANCE ALTHOUGH MOST GUIDANCE QUITE WIDE RANGING. ALSO INCREASED TEMPS SLIGHTLY UP ACROSS THE EAST FOR TONIGHT BASED ON INCREASING MID LEVEL WINDS AND ABUNDANT CLOUD COVER AND ANTECEDENT ABOVE NORMAL TEMPS OBSERVED THIS AFTERNOON. KEPT INHERITED MINIMAL POPS ACROSS FAR NORTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL AREAS FOR TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT. ADJUSTED POPS SLIGHTLY HIGHER FOR WEDNESDAY PERIOD AS ANOTHER FAST MOVING UPPER LEVEL FEATURE CAUGHT WITHIN NORTHWEST FLOW MOVES OVER STATE. PERHAPS A LOW TO MODERATE SNOW ADVISORY EVENT FOR FAR NORTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL AREAS. AS FAR AS WINDS ARE CONCERNED...AS MENTIONED ABOVE...TIMING AN ISSUE. AS I WRITE...SRR CAME IN WITH A 56 KNOT GUST. WORRIED ABOUT THAT OCCURRING PERIODICALLY THE WHOLE NIGHT AS STRONG SOUTHWEST FLOW AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING TROUGH TENDS TO SURFACE NEAR THE SIERRA BLANCA AIRPORT. MID LEVEL GRADIENT DEPICTED BY BOTH THE NAM AND GFS TO BE QUITE STRONG...40 TO 55 KNOTS THUS THE WORRY. WILL MAKE A LAST MINUTE DECISION ON WHAT TO DO WITH THAT. IT IS MOST LIKELY MT WAVE INDUCED AND CAN GO JUST AS QUICKLY AS IT CAME. EVENING SHIFT MAY HAVE TO MAKE THE CALL AND START UP VARIOUS WIND HIGHLIGHT PRODUCTS EARLIER. STILL LOOKING AT WIND GRADIENT TO MOVE THROUGH MID AFTERNOON THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS ON MONDAY. HAVE TO FIGURE A HIGH WIND WARNING IS PROBABLE...AT LEAST FOR ALONG THE CENTRAL MTS EASTWARD THROUGH A PORTION OF EASTERN PLAINS. WHEN TO END IT WILL BE TRICKY AS FAR AS FAR AS DECOUPLING WITH NIGHTFALL...MSLP LOW AND MID LEVEL MAXIMA EJECTION. SUSPECT MAY HAVE TO EXTEND WIND HIGHLIGHTS THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE EAST AND/OR CENTRAL AREAS. LASTLY...WILL GO AHEAD AND UPGRADE FIRE WEATHER WATCH TO A RED FLAG WARNING AND INCLUDE ZONE 104 TO MATCH UP WITH AMA. HUMIDITY AGAIN THE MAIN COMPONENT WHICH IS QUESTIONABLE BUT 15 TO 20 PCT READINGS COUPLED WITH NEAR TO HIGH WIND WARNING SPEEDS CAN MAKE FOR AN INTERESTING FIRE WEATHER DAY. ALSO ADJUSTED CLOUD COVER DOWN SLIGHTLY ACROSS EAST CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST AREAS WITH CLOUD COVER ALSO THINNING ACROSS SOUTHEAST AREAS MONDAY AFTERNOON AS SUBTROPICAL FETCH MOVES OFF TO THE EAST. LASTLY...MODELS DEPICT A FAIR AMOUNT OF INSTABILITY...7 TO 7.5 DEG LAPSE RATES COUPLED WITH WELL ABOVE NORMAL TEMPS. && .AVIATION... MVFR AND SPOTTY IFR CONDITIONS CONTINUING OVER THE WEST AND SPREADING NORTHEASTWARD THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING HOURS AS CEILINGS LOWER AND SHOWERS SPREAD INTO THE WESTERN TWO THIRDS OF THE STATE. EASTERN PLAINS OF NM TO REMAIN IN VFR CONDITIONS. BREEZY TO WINDY CONDITIONS WILL ALSO CONTINUE ACROSS HIGHER RIDGES AND INTO THE EAST CENTRAL AND NORTHEASTERN PLAINS THIS AFTERNOON WITH HIGH WINDS REDEVELOPING EARLY MONDAY FOR MOST OF THE STATE...ESPECIALLY ALONG HIGH TERRAIN AND EAST OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAIN CHAIN WHERE GUSTS TO 50KT WILL BE POSSIBLE. AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW WILL ALSO OCCUR OVER THE HIGH TERRAIN OF THE NORTH AND WEST ON MONDAY. NEXT AVIATION DISCUSSION SCHEDULED FOR 10Z. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... FARMINGTON...................... 32 43 23 36 / 70 60 50 5 GALLUP.......................... 32 42 13 35 / 70 50 40 5 GRANTS.......................... 33 46 16 39 / 70 40 30 5 GLENWOOD........................ 42 56 30 52 / 80 40 20 5 CHAMA........................... 26 39 8 30 / 90 80 70 10 LOS ALAMOS...................... 32 42 16 33 / 70 50 30 5 RED RIVER....................... 29 36 12 27 / 50 70 50 10 TAOS............................ 34 42 18 32 / 60 40 40 5 SANTA FE........................ 33 46 21 36 / 60 50 30 5 SANTA FE AIRPORT................ 35 48 22 38 / 60 40 30 5 ESPANOLA........................ 31 51 22 40 / 60 50 30 5 ALBUQUERQUE HEIGHTS............. 39 53 27 46 / 50 20 20 5 ALBUQUERQUE VALLEY.............. 37 54 23 47 / 40 20 20 5 ALBUQUERQUE FOOTHILLS........... 36 50 25 44 / 50 30 20 5 ALBUQUERQUE WEST MESA........... 38 53 26 47 / 50 30 20 5 SOCORRO......................... 39 60 28 53 / 40 20 5 0 SANDIA PARK/CEDAR CREST......... 35 45 23 36 / 60 60 20 5 MORIARTY/ESTANCIA............... 34 51 25 40 / 40 30 20 5 CARRIZOZO....................... 41 59 29 49 / 40 30 10 5 RUIDOSO......................... 40 52 31 46 / 40 40 10 0 RATON........................... 33 54 18 38 / 10 10 10 0 LAS VEGAS....................... 38 52 21 38 / 30 20 20 0 ROY............................. 39 59 27 42 / 10 10 10 0 CLAYTON......................... 41 64 27 42 / 0 5 5 0 SANTA ROSA...................... 44 66 30 49 / 10 10 5 0 TUCUMCARI....................... 47 69 31 51 / 5 5 5 0 FORT SUMNER..................... 44 69 32 52 / 10 5 5 0 CLOVIS.......................... 45 71 34 52 / 5 5 5 0 PORTALES........................ 44 71 34 53 / 5 5 5 0 ROSWELL......................... 45 72 36 60 / 10 5 5 0 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH WIND WATCH FROM MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH MONDAY EVENING FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ003-005>007-009>013-015>021-026. WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 11 PM MST MONDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ002. SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW ADVISORY UNTIL 11 PM MST MONDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ001-004-008-014. RED FLAG WARNING MONDAY AFTERNOON FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ104-108. && 50/52
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 525 PM MST SUN JAN 27 2008 NMZ001>021-026-281300- NORTHWEST PLATEAU-NORTHWEST MOUNTAINS INCLUDING JEMEZ- UPPER RIO GRANDE VALLEY-SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS- NORTHEAST HIGHLANDS-HARDING COUNTY-FAR NORTHEAST PLAINS- WEST CENTRAL MOUNTAINS- MIDDLE RIO GRANDE VALLEY/ALBUQUERQUE METRO AREA- SANDIA/MANZANO MOUNTAINS-CENTRAL HIGH PLAINS/ESTANCIA VALLEY- CONCHAS LAKE/GUADALUPE COUNTY-QUAY COUNTY- SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS/UPPER GILA REGION-LOWER RIO GRANDE VALLEY- LINCOLN COUNTY HIGH PLAINS/HONDO VALLEY- CAPITAN/NORTHERN SACRAMENTO MOUNTAINS-DE BACA COUNTY- CHAVES COUNTY PLAINS-ROOSEVELT COUNTY-CURRY COUNTY- GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS OF CHAVES COUNTY- 525 PM MST SUN JAN 27 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH AND CENTRAL NEW MEXICO. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT A WINTER STORM WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THE NORTHWEST MOUNTAINS OF NEW MEXICO THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVERNIGHT OVER THE SOUTHERN SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS. IN ADDITION SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW ADVISORIES HAVE BEEN ISSUED FOR MUCH OF WESTERN NEW MEXICO AS WELL AS THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS. PLEASE REFER TO THE NEXT SECTION FOR MORE DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY HEAVY SNOWFALL INITIATING ON DAY ONE WILL PERSIST THROUGH MONDAY... EVENTUALLY DIMINISHING BY LATE MONDAY EVENING. TOTAL ACCUMULATIONS OF 6 TO 12 INCHES WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS ARE LIKELY ABOVE 7500 FEET WITHIN THE NORTHWEST MOUNTAINS. LESSER AMOUNTS RANGING FROM 2 TO 6 INCHES ARE EXPECTED BELOW 7500 FEET. ACROSS WESTERN NEW MEXICO AND THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS...1 TO 3 INCHES OF SNOWFALL WILL BE COMMON ACROSS THE LOWER ELEVATIONS...WITH 4 TO 8 INCHES POSSIBLE ABOVE 7500 FEET. STRONG WINDS WILL CREATE AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW AND HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. WEST WINDS OF 25 TO 40 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 60 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG AND EAST OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAIN CHAIN MONDAY AFTERNOON. MEANWHILE...A RED FLAG WARNING HAS BEEN POSTED FOR PORTIONS THE EAST CENTRAL PLAINS DUE TO LOW HUMIDITIES AND STRONG WINDS ON MONDAY AFTERNOON. WEATHER CAN CHANGE VERY RAPIDLY. ALWAYS USE THE LATEST FORECASTS... WATCHES AND WARNINGS FOR PLANNING PURPOSES. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SNOWFALL AMOUNTS ACROSS NORTHERN AND WESTERN NEW MEXICO BY CALLING 1.888.386.7637 OR BY THE NATIONAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEB SITE. 34
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
350 PM MST SUN JAN 27 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0230 PM NON-TSTM WND GST RUIDOSO 33.37N 105.64W
01/27/2008 M64.00 MPH LINCOLN NM ASOS
RUIDOSO ASOS REPORTED A WIND GUST TO 64 MPH FROM THE
WEST.
&&The Holloman AFB radar (KHDX), 200 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:04 UTC.
8 high wind, 3 heavy snow, 1 flood, 1 flash flood, 1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy rain on January 27th caused the West Fork of the Gila River to leave its banks and severely damage a bridge on state highway 15 near the Gila cliff dwellings.
The ranger station in Glenwood reported Whitewater Creek and Little Creek were out of their banks. Water over state road 174 from Glenwood to Catwalk, and was 3 feet deep in one spot. White Water and Crabapple motels were flooded.
Snowfall amounts were generally in the 2 to 5 inch range at lower elevations, while 18 inches were reported in the Chuska mountains.
Snowfall ranged from 2 inches across the lower elevations of Sandoval county to 14 inches near the Colorado border.
Snowfall reports ranged from 8 and 9 inches over northern Santa Fe and southern Taos county...to around 20 inches in the high mountains.
Strong winds knocked over a large, dead tree in a mobile park in Roswell on the afternoon of the 28th. The tree damaged two cars and a mobile home.
A high sustained wind speed of 40 mph was also reported at 804pm on January 28th.
High winds were reported between 150am on January 28th to 1210am on January 29th. Peak gusts ranged from 58 mph to 64 mph and sustained winds ranged from 40 mph to 51 mph.
The AWOS at Los Alamos also reported a peak wind gusts of 61 mph at 650am on January 29th. The general public reported a measured peak wind gust of 60 mph in Rio Rancho at 1208am on January 29th. High winds caused roof damage in Los Alamos. A portion of a roof was blown off an old barrack style apartment building. Two pine trees fell and damaged another roof at 47th Street and Urban Avenue, while a large pine tree behind Fuller Lodge fell and damaged a rose garden. Another tree snapped and fell onto a truck's camper shell on Torreon Street in Quemazon, causing damage. Many homes in Los Alamos lost shingles and there were a number of power outages.
High winds were reported between 1153am on January 28th to 928am on January 29th. peak wind gusts ranged between 60 mph and 64 mph while a high sustained wind speeds ranged from 41 mph to 48 mph.
High winds were reported between 1023am on January 28th to 256am on January 29th. Peak wind gusts ranged from 59 mph to 62 mph and a high|sustained wind of 43 mph was reported during this time.
A high sustained wind speed of 45 mph was reported at 1053am on January 28th.
High winds were reported between 1237pm on January 28th to 555am on January 29th. Peak wind gusts ranged from 58 mph to 63 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, January 2008
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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 69058, 67665, 67664, 67662, 67663, 68930, 67135, 67128, 67380, 67132, 67129, 67379, 67131, 67133.