An upper level trough racing eastward across the southern Rockies forced a strong cold front through New Mexico with another round of high winds. The strongest winds once again impacted the area from the central mountain chain eastward along Interstate 40.
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.
An upper level trough racing eastward across the southern Rockies forced a strong cold front through New Mexico with another round of high winds. The strongest winds once again impacted the area from the central mountain chain eastward along Interstate 40. Wind gusts between 70 and 80 mph were reported over the high peaks of the central mountain chain, including Kachina Peak, Sandia Crest, and the Magdalena Ridge Observatory. Gusts across the eastern plains averaged 60 to 65 mph with a few areas of blowing dust. Even the Rio Grande Valley experienced very windy conditions with wind gusts up to 50 mph from near Santa Fe south to Albuquerque and Socorro. A small wildfire broke along the Rio Grande near Monta o Road in Albuquerque.
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 Mar 5, 10:33 PM MST, 2 hours 57 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 1033 PM MST Sun Mar 5 2017 .AVIATION... 06Z TAF CYCLE VFR conditions at TAF sites into Monday night, except for some reduction in visibility due to blowing dust Monday afternoon, mainly on the eastern plains. Winds will be steady tonight then will pick up quickly Monday morning. Gusts around 35kt by 18Z Monday at KGUP, KFMN, KAEG, KABQ, KSAF and KROW. High winds at KLVS and KTCC with gusts around 50KT by 18Z Monday. Rain and snow showers over the western and northern mountains will cause occasional mountain obscurations through Monday. 40 && .PREV DISCUSSION...238 PM MST Sun Mar 5 2017... .SYNOPSIS... An upper level trough approaching from California will cross New Mexico tonight and Monday with another round of windy conditions. The strongest winds will be found over the high terrain and much of eastern NM Monday where gusts to 60 mph are likely. Just enough moisture with this system will squeeze out a couple inches of snow over the northern mountains tonight. High temperatures will be 10 to 20 degrees colder Monday making it feel quite chilly compared to the past few days. Above normal temperatures and sunny skies will return to New Mexico Tuesday through the end of the week. && .DISCUSSION... A 120-140kt upper level jet on the eastern periphery of an upper level trough along the west coast will slide over the southern Rockies tonight and Monday. A deep fetch of moisture advecting northeast across AZ/NM ahead of this feature is creating a rather cloudy day today. Temps are still quite pleasant however clouds and wind are making it feel cooler. Have added the northeast highlands to the windy advisory for today as speeds have been at criteria for a couple hours now. The initial moist southwest flow will slide into the northern high terrain tonight and produce a couple inches of snow above 8,000'. The real story will be the strong jet and increasing surface winds over NM Monday. Have upgraded the high wind watch to a warning and expect an area of advisories to be added to some of the surrounding area for tomorrow. Strong 700mb cold advection will slide east over the state Monday with readings falling to near -12C by late day across the northern tier. Max temps will fall to 5-10F below normal over the northwest half, and with windy conditions it will feel very chilly. Very dry air, clear skies, and lighter winds Monday night will plummet temps into the teens and 20s. Any budding fruit trees or cool season crops will need protection from this hard freeze. Tuesday will feature west/northwest flow aloft tapering off through the day. Temps will trend several degrees warmer. The rest of the week looks very pleasant for much of the region with temps warming above normal under relatively light winds and mostly sunny skies. The exception will be over the southern high terrain and southeast NM where return flow develops ahead of a weakening upper wave shifting east across northern Mexico. Low clouds and perhaps some light rain showers are possible Thursday morning into Friday morning. Guyer && .FIRE WEATHER... Fire weather condtions will persist across eastern areas the rest of the afternoon...with advisory level winds across the west central plateau, the Chuska and SC mtns. Breezy to windy SW winds elsewhere will taper down this evening but remain gusty across higher elevations. Meanwhile, overnight lows will be well above normal...especially east of the central mtn chain. Winds will begin ramping up along and east of the central mtn chain overnight into Mon...with high winds beginning across the Sangre De Cristos around midnight then expanding across much of the NE/EC Plains mid morning through the rest of the afternoon. Critical fire weather concerns will favor central and eastern Mon but most of potential fire weather activity will focus across the eastern plains...mainly because of cooler temperatures brought on by a Pacific cold front pushing west to east. Although temperatures will cool several degrees, the far eastern and SE Plains will remain 5 to 15 degrees above normal...while central and western areas fall 5 to 15 degrees below normal. Meanwhile, winds will definitely ramp up to high wind criteria east of the central mtn chain with gusts topping 50-65mph. Drier air will filter into the state Mon aftn as the upper level disturbance pushes through the central Rockies which will help drop dewpoints into the single digits and teens areawide. Drier zonal westerly flow will dominate the region through the end of the work week...allowing a quick rebound of temperatures back to above normal readings by Wed. Models still indicate return flow across the SE plains Wed evening into Thurs that could help increase low clouds/sfc moisture that will be limited to the SE plains...but the latest model comparisons show low confidence of any wetting precipitation chances. 32 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Red Flag Warning from 11 AM to 6 PM MST Monday for the following zones... NMZ104-108. High Wind Warning from 9 AM to 6 PM MST Monday for the following zones... NMZ523-528>534. Wind Advisory until 6 PM MST Monday for the following zones... NMZ526. High Wind Warning until 6 PM MST Monday for the following zones... NMZ513-515-527. Wind Advisory until 5 AM MST Monday for the following zones... NMZ502. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 253 AM MST Sun Mar 5 2017 NMZ501>540-061000- 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 Cristos above 9500 feet/Red River- Southern Sangre de Cristos above 9500 feet- East Slopes Sangre de Cristo Mountains-Upper Rio Grande Valley- Lower Chama River Valley-Santa Fe Metro Area- Middle Rio Grande Valley/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- 253 AM MST Sun Mar 5 2017 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of north and central New Mexico. .DAY ONE...Tonight Critical fire weather conditions are expected this afternoon across the eastern plains. A red flag warning is in effect for much of eastern New Mexico this afternoon. Strong west winds are likely across the higher terrain tonight, likely requiring wind advisories. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Monday through Saturday Strengthening winds ahead of a mostly dry cold front may bring critical fire weather conditions to portions of eastern New Mexico Monday. A Fire Weather Watch is in effect Monday for portions of eastern New Mexico. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Contact local law enforcement or the National Weather Service to report strong winds or wind damage. 33
12 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The top of the Sandia Peak Tram reported a peak wind gust to 61 mph. Areas along the east slopes of the Sandia Mountains from the San Pedro Creek neighborhood to Edgewood reported peak winds up to 60 mph.
The Sierra Blanca Regional Airport reported peak wind gusts between 58 and 61 mph for several hours. Sustained winds were as high as 43 mph.
Kachina Peak at Taos Ski Valley reported peak wind gusts between 70 and 80 mph for around 12 hours.
The RAWS station near Ute Park reported a peak wind gust to 69 mph. The Angel Fire airport also experienced high wind gusts to 62 mph for several hours.
The Raton Crews Airport reported peak wind gusts up to 60 mph for several hours.
The CSBF Transwestern Pump station reported peak wind gusts up to 58 mph for several hours.
The Los Alamos National Lab weather network reported a peak wind gust up to 72 mph. The Los Alamos airport reported a peak wind gust up to 58 mph.
The Clayton Airport reported peak wind gusts up to 60 mph for several hours. The area around Sedan also reported peak wind gusts up to 60 mph with sustained winds as high as 45 mph.
The area from Las Vegas southeastward along U.S. Highway 84 to near Tecolotito reported peak wind gusts up to 61 mph.
The area around Harvey Ranch reported peak wind gusts up to 65 mph. Clines Corners reported peak wind gusts up to 63 mph.
Moriarty reported peak wind gusts up to 60 mph.
The Tucumcari Municipal Airport reported a peak wind gust up to 61 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, March 2017
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: 674124, 674125, 674127, 674128, 674135, 674138, 674141, 674144, 674148, 674150, 674152, 674154.