As a disturbance crossed to the north of the state, strong westerly winds aloft combined with above normal mixing heights and a deepening lee side trough resulted in strong and gusty winds across the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, northeast highlands and central highlands throughout the day. During the afternoon of the 16th a fire started south of Albuquerque in the Isleta Pueblo (Rec Fire).
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.
As a disturbance crossed to the north of the state, strong westerly winds aloft combined with above normal mixing heights and a deepening lee side trough resulted in strong and gusty winds across the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, northeast highlands and central highlands throughout the day.
During the afternoon of the 16th a fire started south of Albuquerque in the Isleta Pueblo (Rec Fire). The cause for the fire is under investigation and was fully contained later that week.
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 16, 4:47 AM MST, 3 hours 13 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 447 AM MST SUN FEB 16 2014 .AVIATION... 12Z TAF CYCLE VFR CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE NEXT 24 HOURS. STRONG W TO NW WINDS AT MT TOP LEVEL TO INCREASE AGAIN TODAY. SHALLOW AND DRY BACK DOOR COLD FRONT HAS MOVED SOUTH ACROSS THE E PLAINS WILL WASH OUT THIS AFTERNOON. WITH THE STRONGER MID LEVEL WINDS EXPECT INCREASING W-SW SFC WINDS AT ALL TAF SITES LATE MORNING AND AFTN SUN. GUSTS WILL REACH 40 TO 45 KTS SUN AFTN ALONG AND E OF THE CENTRAL MT CHAIN. LOCAL MVFR VSBY POSSIBLE FROM BLOWING DUST ACROSS THE CNTRL HIGHLANDS. WINDS WILL DIMINISH MOST AREAS AFTER 00Z MON ALTHOUGH LOCALIZED STRONG WINDS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS AND NE HIGH TERRAIN THROUGH TONIGHT DUE TO MOUNTAIN WAVE ACTIVITY. 40 && .PREV DISCUSSION...312 AM MST SUN FEB 16 2014... .SYNOPSIS... THROUGH AT LEAST WEDNESDAY...IT WILL FEEL MUCH MORE LIKE SPRING THAN WINTER. DRY...WARM AND WINDY WILL BE THE RULE WITH PERIODS OF CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. WIDESPREAD CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON AS TEMPERATURES BREAK RECORDS FOR THE DATE ONCE AGAIN. CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS MAY RETURN WEDNESDAY AND AGAIN FRIDAY AS A PAIR OF UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEMS SLIDE ACROSS COLORADO AND INCREASE WINDS ACROSS NEW MEXICO. A COOL DOWN IS EXPECTED NEXT WEEKEND WITH THE PASSAGE OF A COLD FRONT...BUT DRY WEATHER WILL PREVAIL. && .DISCUSSION... TEMPERATURES ARE STILL ON TAP TO CHALLENGE RECORDS FOR THE DATE THIS AFTERNOON. HOWEVER...DID LOWER HIGHS A BIT IN SOME AREAS...AS ABUNDANT HIGH CLOUD COVER MAY TAPER THE WARMING SOME. OTHERWISE... WINDY CONDITIONS WILL AGAIN BE ON TAP THIS AFTERNOON WITH WELL ABOVE NORMAL MIXING HEIGHTS FOR FEBRUARY AND UP TO 45KT AT 700 MB. THUS...WILL ISSUE A WIND ADVISORY FOR THE SANGRE DE CRISTOS... ADJACENT NORTHEAST HIGHLANDS AND CENTRAL HIGHLANDS. LOOKS LIKE 700 MB WINDS INCREASE THIS EVENING...AND WITH DUE WESTERLY FLOW...COULD BE SOME MOUNTAIN WAVE ACTIVITY. THEREFORE WILL RUN THE SANGRES AND NE HIGHLANDS THROUGH 4AM...AS 7H WINDS SHOULD REALLY DROP OFF THEREAFTER. THE SHORTWAVE MOVING ACROSS COLORADO TODAY AND INCREASING THE WINDS WILL DROP AN ASSOCIATED BACK DOOR COLD FRONT ACROSS THE PLAINS EARLY TOMORROW MORNING. TEMPS WILL BE COOLER AREAWIDE...BUT MORE-SO ACROSS THE PLAINS. REGARDLESS...TEMPS WILL STILL BE 5 TO 15 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. ANOTHER BACK DOOR FRONT WILL NUDGE INTO THE NE ON TUESDAY AND SLIDE FURTHER INTO THE STATE TUESDAY NIGHT. THIS WILL WASH OUT QUICKLY ON WEDNESDAY AND BREEZY TO WINDY CONDITIONS WILL RETURN. YET ANOTHER BACK DOOR FRONT LOOKS TO MOVE INTO THE STATE ON THURSDAY...AND THIS ONE WILL ACTUALLY BRING TEMPS BACK DOWN TO NORMAL VALUES ACROSS NE AND EC NM. AGAIN...THIS FRONT WILL WASH OUT QUICKLY AND ANOTHER ROUND OF BREEZY/WINDY CONDITIONS WILL BE ON TAP FOR FRIDAY. PRECIPITATION POTENTIAL SEEMS TO BE TRENDING DOWNWARD...NOT THAT IT WAS EVER VERY HIGH IN THE FIRST PLACE. THE ECMWF HAS BACKED OFF ON THE STRENGTH OF THE TROUGH MOVING ACROSS WEDNESDAY NIGHT...THOUGH THE GFS SHOWS A LITTLE TIDBIT OF QPF WEDNESDAY ACROSS THE NW...BUT NOT READY TO BITE OFF ON THAT...SO A DRY FORECAST FOR THIS PERIOD IS IN PLACE. BOTH MODELS ALSO SEEM TO BE BACKING OFF ON THE FRIDAY/SATURDAY SYSTEM AS WELL...AND HAVE ONLY MAINTAINED SOME CHICKEN 10-POPS ACROSS THE NE ON SAT NIGHT. HOWEVER...THIS SYSTEM SHOULD SEND DOWN A MUCH STRONGER COLD FRONT...THUS TEMPERATURES MAY ACTUALLY RETURN TO BELOW NORMAL VALUES ON SATURDAY. 34 && .FIRE WEATHER... CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONCERNS TODAY OVER MUCH OF THE AREA. HAVE ADDED FIRE WEATHER ZONES 101 AND 103 TO THE RED FLAG WARNING TODAY. A SHORT WAVE TROUGH PASSING TO OUR NORTH WILL BRING INCREASING WINDS ALOFT TODAY. GENERALLY HIGH MIXING HEIGHTS WILL BRING THESE WINDS DOWN TO THE SURFACE. MEANWHILE DEWPOINTS WILL CRATER INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS AND TEENS. MINIMUM RH VALUES WILL DROP TO BETWEEN 7 AND 13 PERCENT ASIDE FROM THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS. THE STRONG WINDS AND LOW RH VALUES WILL CREATE WIDESPREAD CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. AS MENTIONED ABOVE...HAVE ADDED ZONES 101 AND 103. ZONE 103 IS A TOUGH CALL. THE STRONGEST WINDS WILL OCCUR HERE WITH LOW RH VALUES BELOW SIGNIFICANT SNOWPACK. BUT HAINES VALUES ARE MOSTLY VERY LOW TO LOW AND MIXING HEIGHTS ARE NOT ALL THAT HIGH. TEMPERATURES THOUGH ARE WELL ABOVE NORMAL. EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE MIXED SIGNALS IN ZONE 103 FELT IT PRUDENT TO GO AHEAD WITH A RED FLAG WARNING. VENT RATES OBVIOUSLY EXCELLENT TODAY. THE COLD FRONT THAT PRESSED SOUTH ACROSS THE EASTERN PLAINS DURING THE NIGHT WILL WASH OUT TODAY. THE COLD FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH THE ABOVE MENTIONED SHORT WAVE TROUGH WILL SLIDE SOUTHEASTWARD ACROSS THE STATE TONIGHT. THE COOLER AIR AND LESS WIND BEHIND THE FRONT WILL RESULT IN A BRIEF BREAK IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS MONDAY. VENT RATES WILL STILL BE MOSTLY GOOD TO EXCELLENT. LOCALIZED CRITICAL CONDITIONS WILL RETURN TO THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS NEAR CLINES CORNERS TUESDAY AFTERNOON. STRONGER WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT RETURNS TO CENTRAL AND NORTHERN NM WEDNESDAY FOR THE POTENTIAL FOR MORE WIDESPREAD CRITICAL CONDITIONS WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY. A BACK DOOR COLD FRONT INTO THE EAST ON THURSDAY WILL MEAN THE LEAST LIKELY DAY FOR CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER. MEANWHILE IT WILL REMAIN DRY FOR THE MID AND LATE WEEK PERIOD WITH MOSTLY ABOVE NORMAL TEMPS AND NO VENTILATION CONCERNS. GFS AND ECMWF IN FAIR TO GOOD AGREEMENT THAT A VIGOROUS BUT MOSTLY DRY COLD FRONT WILL PLOW SOUTHEASTWARD THROUGH THE STATE FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY BRINGING MUCH COLDER TEMPERATURES AND A LEAST A RESPITE TO THE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS NEXT WEEKEND. CHJ && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... RED FLAG WARNING FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ101-103>108. WIND ADVISORY FROM NOON TODAY TO 6 PM MST THIS EVENING FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ523-533. WIND ADVISORY FROM NOON TODAY TO 4 AM MST MONDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES...NMZ512>515-527>529. && 40
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM 628 AM MST SUN FEB 16 2014 NMZ501>540-171200- 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- 628 AM MST SUN FEB 16 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH AND CENTRAL NEW MEXICO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT BETWEEN NOON AND 7 PM FOR ALL OF NORTHERN AND CENTRAL NEW MEXICO EXCEPT THE NORTH CENTRAL MOUNTAINS AND THE WEST CENTRAL HIGHLANDS. LOW HUMIDITIES COMBINED WITH STRONG WINDS WILL CREATE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. WINDS MAY GUST AS HIGH AS 50 MPH ACROSS THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS AND ADJACENT HIGHLANDS THROUGH TONIGHT. SIMILAR GUSTS CAN BE EXPECTED ACROSS THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS THIS AFTERNOON. BLOWING DUST IS POSSIBLE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS MAY RETURN TO THE STATE ON WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY. WEATHER CAN CHANGE VERY RAPIDLY. ALWAYS USE THE LATEST FORECASTS... WATCHES AND WARNINGS FOR PLANNING PURPOSES. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... CONTACT YOUR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AT 911 AND THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AT 1.888.386.7637 TO REPORT WILDFIRES. 34
3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The Clines Corners ASOS recorded high winds during the morning of February 16, 2014. Sustained speeds ranging from 31-48 mph were recorded with a peak gust reaching 61 mph.
The Raton Airport ASOS recorded high winds during the afternoon of February 16, 2014. Sustained speeds in the upper thirties as well as a peak wind gust to 58mph were recorded.
The Bartley RAWS recorded a high wind gust to 58 mph the afternoon of February 16, 2014.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, February 2014
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: 490027, 490028, 490030.