New Mexico, 2019

Drought in New Mexico, October 1 to 15, 2019

October 1 to 15, 2019 · NWS ABQ · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Moderate to severe drought conditions across portions of western New Mexico at the end of September 2019 expanded to include northern New Mexico in October. Moderate to severe drought conditions expanded to include 35 percent of the state of which 9 percent across western NM was deemed as severe drought.

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS ABQ wrote it up.

Moderate to severe drought conditions across portions of western New Mexico at the end of September 2019 expanded to include northern New Mexico in October. Moderate to severe drought conditions expanded to include 35 percent of the state of which 9 percent across western NM was deemed as severe drought. Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions in southeastern NM at the end of September improved to no drought conditions in October as the remnants of Tropical Storm Narda moved through the area. Precipitation amounts across western NM during October ranged from a quarter to a half inch, however, dismal precipitation amounts continued in the Four Corners region where less than a quarter inch of precipitation was observed.

What forecasters said that day

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 Sep 30, 10:27 PM MST, 1 hour 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 30, 10:27 PM MST, 1 hour 33 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
Hazardous weather outlook, Sep 30, 2:13 AM MST, 21 hours 47 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 30, 6:39 PM MST, 5 hours 21 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

Event by event

4 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Northwest Plateau

When
October 1, 12:00 AM MST to October 15, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Northwest Plateau forecast zone
Reported by
Drought Monitor

Severe drought conditions spread to more of the Northwest Plateau through October 2019. The Farmington Airport only recorded 0.17 inches of precipitation during the month, well below normal.

Drought, Chuska Mountains

When
October 1, 12:00 AM MST to October 15, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Chuska Mountains forecast zone
Reported by
Drought Monitor

Severe drought conditions from September 2019 continued in October.

Drought, West Central Plateau

When
October 1, 12:00 AM MST to October 15, 11:59 PM MST
Where
West Central Plateau forecast zone
Reported by
Drought Monitor

Severe drought conditions from September 2019 continued in October.

Drought, Northwest Highlands

When
October 1, 12:00 AM MST to October 15, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Northwest Highlands forecast zone
Reported by
Drought Monitor

Severe drought conditions developed during October 2019. Below normal precipitation amounts set the stage for deteriorating drought conditions.

What these are

Drought
A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in New Mexico in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, October 2019

Sources

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: 854961, 854962, 854963, 854964.