Strong winds developed during the early morning hours across the east central plains of New Mexico. Gusts over 60 mph were recorded for over an hour.
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.
Strong winds developed during the early morning hours across the east central plains of New Mexico. Gusts over 60 mph were recorded for over an hour. Though strong winds were noted elsewhere across the plains, gusts of this magnitude were only noted around Fort Sumner.
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 Feb 22, 3:00 AM MST, 1 hour 27 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 300 AM MST WED FEB 22 2012 .DISCUSSION... W TO NW FLOW TO DOMINATE THE WEATHER PATTERN THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. SEVERAL UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES AND ASSOCIATED SURFACE COLD FRONTS WILL RACE SE IN THE FLOW AND CLIP NC AND NE NM WITH WHAT SHOULD BE MOSTLY LIGHT PRECIPITATION. WIND AND FIRE WEATHER CONCERNS THE MAIN FOCUS THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD...ALONG WITH TIMING OF COLD FRONTS AND THE RESULTING DAY TO DAY TEMPERATURE SWINGS. OVERALL LESS WIND TODAY COMPARED TO TUESDAY...BUT STILL BREEZY TO WINDY OVER OUR EC AND SE ZONES. ENOUGH WIND EXPECTED ACROSS THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS AND GUADALUPE COUNTY FOR A WIND ADVISORY LATE THIS PM THROUGH THE PM. MARGINAL CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. SEE DISCUSSION BELOW. MILDER TEMPERATURES TODAY...ESPECIALLY E. NOTHING MORE THAN AN ISOLATED SNOW SHOWER OVER THE PEAKS OF THE SAN JUAN AND SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS. TONIGHT WILL BE MAINLY DRY AND NOT AS CHILLY AS RECENT NIGHTS. A WEAK SHORT WAVE WILL RACE SE ON THU...PASSING NE OF THE STATE. A SURFACE COLD FRONT WILL BACK INTO THE NE THU WITH 15 TO 25 DEGREES OF COOLING. ISOLATED AND LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS FOR THE NRN MOUNTAINS AND RAIN SHOWERS IN THE NE. WIND WILL AGAIN BE A FACTOR WITH ADVISORY LEVEL SPEEDS FOR SOME CENTRAL AREAS. ANOTHER COLD FRONT WILL MOVE S THU NIGHT THROUGH THE ENTIRE FORECAST AREA. AGAIN ONLY SNOW SHOWERS SHOULD BE THE NC AND NE AREAS. IT WILL BE COLDER THU NIGHT AND CHILLY ON FRI WITH MOSTLY BELOW TEMPERATURES. WINDS SHOULD BE NOTICEABLY LESS ON FRI. THE WEEKEND WILL START DRY AND MILDER. THE WIND MACHINE WILL CRANK UP AGAIN WITH BREEZY TO WINDY CONDITIONS OVER THE W AND CNTRL MOUNTAINS AND ALL OF THE E. ANOTHER UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL BRUSH THE N SAT NIGHT AND SUN WITH ISOLATED SNOW SHOWERS. IT WILL BE COOLER SUN EVERYWHERE...AND OF COURSE MORE WIND...ALTHOUGH IT SHOULD BE A BIT LESS THAN SAT. THE START OF NEXT WEEK WILL BE DRY AND COOL BUT YET ANOTHER DISTURBANCE IS SLATED FOR TUE INTO WED. CHJ && .AVIATION... GUSTY WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS WILL DEVELOP AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON ALONG AND EAST OF THE CENTRAL MTN CHAIN...ESPECIALLY BETWEEN KCQC AND KCVS. GUSTS TO 40KT ARE POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY LATE THIS AFTERNOON. OTHERWISE...VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL WITH HIGH CLOUDS PASSING OVER THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE STATE. LATE TONIGHT...STRONG AND GUSTY WINDS WILL DEVELOP OVER THE NORTHERN MTNS...AND SOME MTN WAVE ACTIVITY IS POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT. NEXT AVIATION DISCUSSION SCHEDULED FOR 22Z. 34 && .FIRE WEATHER... MAIN CONCERN IS THE POTENTIAL FOR A FEW HOURS OF CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS TODAY ACROSS THE EAST CENTRAL PLAINS. A VERY MARGINALLY CRITICAL DAY IS SETTING UP...AND CONTEMPLATED ISSUING A RED FLAG WARNING FOR ZONE 108...BUT OPTED NOT TO. TEMPERATURES WILL BE 10 TO 15 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL IN THIS AREA...BUT DEWPOINTS SHOULD SLOWLY BE ON THE RISE TODAY. THIS LEADS TO MINIMUM HUMIDITIES NEAR 15 PERCENT. ALSO...WINDS TODAY ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE AS STRONG...BUT AFTER THE STRONGER THAN ANTICIPATED WINDS YESTERDAY AFTERNOON...SOMEWHAT CONCERNED MODELS MAY BE UNDER DOING IT AGAIN....ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE SURFACE GRADIENT. HOWEVER...THE TUCUMCARI PROFILER IS NOT SHOWING AS STRONG OF WINDS OFF THE SURFACE AS IT WAS YESTERDAY. THUS...WIDESPREAD CRITICAL CONDITIONS DO NOT LOOK LIKE A SAFE BET DUE TO THE MARGINALITY OF BOTH WIND AND HUMIDITY. THOUGH BOTH WILL NEED TO BE MONITORED CAREFULLY THIS AFTERNOON. CAN SAFELY EXPECT 1 OR 2 HOURS...LOCALLY 3...OF CRITICAL CONDITIONS FROM NEAR SANTA ROSA SOUTHWARD TO YESO. 700 MB WINDS WILL ONLY BE ON THE INCREASE FROM MID AFTERNOON THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING. THUS...CAN EXPECT SOME OCCASIONAL GUSTY WINDS ACROSS THE CENTRAL MTN CHAIN AND ADJACENT HIGH PLAINS OVERNIGHT. ANOTHER ROUND OF FAIR HUMIDITY RECOVERIES WILL BE LIKELY ACROSS THE EAST...WITH GOOD OR BETTER RECOVERIES ELSEWHERE. NEXT UPPER LEVEL WAVE WILL CLIP NE NM ON THURSDAY. THUS WAVE WILL GIVE US LITTLE PRECIPITATION...BUT WILL INCREASE THE WINDS AND COOL TEMPERATURES. FRONTAL TIMING WILL BE THE KEY TO WHETHER OR NOT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE EAST CENTRAL PLAINS. RIGHT NOW...THINK ONE TO TWO HOURS WILL BE POSSIBLE...BUT OVERALL BELIEVE THE FRONT WILL BE FAST ENOUGH TO COOL TEMPERATURES AND RAISE HUMIDITIES BEFORE CRITICAL CONDITIONS BECOME A CONCERN. REGARDLESS...WINDS WILL RAMP UP...ON BOTH SIDES OF THE STATE. NORTHWEST WINDS ACROSS CENTRAL AND WESTERN AREAS MAY GUSTS TO 45 MPH BEHIND A PACIFIC FRONT...MEANWHILE...GUSTS TO 40 MPH WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE BEHIND THE BACK DOOR FRONT. FRIDAY SHOULD BE COOLER AND QUIETER WITH LESS WIND. THIS BREAK WILL BE SHORT-LIVED HOWEVER...AS THE WEEKEND IS SHAPING UP TO BE QUITE WINDY. BOTH SATURDAY AND SUNDAY WILL BE WINDY AS A BROAD UPPER LEVEL TROUGH TAKES SHAPE OVER THE WESTERN U.S. CRITICAL CONDITIONS LOOK TO REDEVELOP ON SUNDAY AS THE DRY SLOT MOVES OVER NM. 34 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... FARMINGTON...................... 54 28 53 20 / 0 0 5 0 DULCE........................... 48 19 46 13 / 0 0 5 0 CUBA............................ 49 23 50 15 / 0 0 0 0 GALLUP.......................... 55 23 56 16 / 0 0 0 0 EL MORRO........................ 50 22 54 16 / 0 0 0 0 GRANTS.......................... 54 26 57 21 / 0 0 0 0 QUEMADO......................... 57 27 59 18 / 0 0 0 0 GLENWOOD........................ 65 30 65 22 / 0 0 0 0 CHAMA........................... 45 15 40 14 / 5 5 10 0 LOS ALAMOS...................... 52 26 52 21 / 0 0 0 0 PECOS........................... 51 28 50 20 / 0 0 0 0 CERRO/QUESTA.................... 49 19 46 12 / 5 5 5 5 RED RIVER....................... 44 15 40 10 / 5 5 10 10 ANGEL FIRE...................... 47 16 44 9 / 5 5 10 10 TAOS............................ 51 20 48 16 / 0 0 0 0 MORA............................ 55 25 49 14 / 0 0 10 10 ESPANOLA........................ 55 25 56 24 / 0 0 0 0 SANTA FE........................ 52 28 54 25 / 0 0 0 0 SANTA FE AIRPORT................ 55 29 57 22 / 0 0 0 0 ALBUQUERQUE FOOTHILLS........... 59 33 62 29 / 0 0 0 0 ALBUQUERQUE HEIGHTS............. 61 35 64 30 / 0 0 0 0 ALBUQUERQUE VALLEY.............. 62 30 66 27 / 0 0 0 0 ALBUQUERQUE WEST MESA........... 60 32 64 29 / 0 0 0 0 LOS LUNAS....................... 63 30 66 25 / 0 0 0 0 RIO RANCHO...................... 60 33 62 28 / 0 0 0 0 SOCORRO......................... 66 37 68 28 / 0 0 0 0 SANDIA PARK/CEDAR CREST......... 56 31 58 21 / 0 0 0 0 TIJERAS......................... 58 33 61 24 / 0 0 0 0 MORIARTY/ESTANCIA............... 57 30 58 20 / 0 0 0 0 CLINES CORNERS.................. 54 32 55 20 / 0 0 0 0 GRAN QUIVIRA.................... 58 32 60 25 / 0 0 0 0 CARRIZOZO....................... 62 32 63 26 / 0 0 0 0 RUIDOSO......................... 60 34 58 25 / 0 0 0 0 CAPULIN......................... 62 26 47 14 / 0 5 10 20 RATON........................... 68 27 53 14 / 0 5 10 10 SPRINGER........................ 66 30 53 20 / 0 0 10 10 LAS VEGAS....................... 63 32 56 15 / 0 0 10 10 CLAYTON......................... 72 37 46 19 / 0 0 10 10 ROY............................. 69 34 53 21 / 0 0 10 10 CONCHAS......................... 71 35 57 26 / 0 0 10 10 SANTA ROSA...................... 73 35 60 22 / 0 0 5 10 TUCUMCARI....................... 76 37 58 20 / 0 0 10 10 CLOVIS.......................... 73 36 62 23 / 0 0 0 5 PORTALES........................ 74 37 64 24 / 0 0 0 5 FORT SUMNER..................... 74 36 68 25 / 0 0 0 5 ROSWELL......................... 77 38 77 30 / 0 0 0 0 PICACHO......................... 69 38 70 26 / 0 0 0 0 ELK............................. 65 37 65 25 / 0 0 0 0 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WIND ADVISORY FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ523-533. && 40/34
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 600 AM MST TUE FEB 21 2012 NMZ501>540-221300- NORTHWEST PLATEAU-CHUSKA MOUNTAINS-FAR NORTHWEST HIGHLANDS- NORTHWEST HIGHLANDS-WEST CENTRAL PLATEAU-WEST CENTRAL MOUNTAINS- WEST CENTRAL HIGHLANDS-SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS- SAN FRANCISCO RIVER VALLEY-SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-JEMEZ MOUNTAINS- WEST SLOPES SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS- NORTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS ABOVE 9500 FEET/RED RIVER- SOUTHERN SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS ABOVE 9500 FEET- EAST SLOPES SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS-UPPER RIO GRANDE VALLEY- LOWER CHAMA RIVER VALLEY-SANTA FE METRO AREA-ALBUQUERQUE METRO AREA- LOWER RIO GRANDE VALLEY-SANDIA/MANZANO MOUNTAINS-ESTANCIA VALLEY- CENTRAL HIGHLANDS-SOUTH CENTRAL HIGHLANDS-UPPER TULAROSA VALLEY- SOUTH CENTRAL MOUNTAINS-RATON RIDGE/JOHNSON MESA- FAR NORTHEAST HIGHLANDS-NORTHEAST HIGHLANDS-UNION COUNTY- HARDING COUNTY-EASTERN SAN MIGUEL COUNTY-GUADALUPE COUNTY- QUAY COUNTY-CURRY COUNTY-ROOSEVELT COUNTY-DE BACA COUNTY- CHAVES COUNTY PLAINS-EASTERN LINCOLN COUNTY-SOUTHWEST CHAVES COUNTY- 600 AM MST TUE FEB 21 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH AND CENTRAL NEW MEXICO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON OVER THE EAST CENTRAL PLAINS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS TO AROUND 50 MPH ARE POSSIBLE THURSDAY AFTERNOON ALONG THE EAST SLOPES OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAIN CHAIN AND OVER THE EAST CENTRAL PLAINS. WEATHER CAN CHANGE VERY RAPIDLY. ALWAYS USE THE LATEST FORECASTS... WATCHES AND WARNINGS FOR PLANNING PURPOSES. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... CONTACT LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AT 1.888.386.7637 TO REPORT WILD LAND FIRES.
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
An APRSWXNet Station recorded sustained winds over 40 mph for over an hour just northwest of Sumner Lake.
The Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility recorded a peak wind gust of 69 mph while an APRSWXNet Station recorded a 66 mph wind gust just northwest of Sumner Lake. Severe gusts were recorded for over an hour.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, February 2012
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: 357930, 357929.