A slow-moving low pressure system continued to move southward and centered itself over southwestern Arizona on April 27, 2021. This steered a strong upper-level jet over the state which resulted in continued strengthening of southwest flow.
Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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 slow-moving low pressure system continued to move southward and centered itself over southwestern Arizona on April 27, 2021. This steered a strong upper-level jet over the state which resulted in continued strengthening of southwest flow. Meanwhile, a surface low also continued to deepen over southeastern Colorado. Windy conditions redeveloped over much of New Mexico early on the 27th with the strongest winds observed in the lower Rio Grande Valley, the central highlands, and the southern high terrain. Wind speeds of 50 to 70 mph were common through the afternoon with the strongest wind gust of 72 mph observed near Corona.
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 Apr 27, 2:30 AM MST, 40 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 330 AM MDT Tue Apr 27 2021 .SYNOPSIS... Strong southwest winds and continued warmer than normal temperatures will produce another round of critical fire weather conditions over eastern New Mexico today. Elsewhere, cooler weather with increasing chances for showers and a few thunderstorms are forecast. Cooler weather is expected area wide Wednesday and Thursday with chances for showers and a few storms. An upper ridge will bring drier and warmer weather Friday, and temperatures will warm even more over the weekend. Winds will increase as well, leading to potential for critical fire weather condtions Sunday and Monday. && .DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM...(TODAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY)... An upper level low over northern NV this morning will re-develop over the SoCal/SW AZ border this afternoon. This low will scoot eastward across the AZ/MX border tonight and then finally across southern NM on Wednesday. Abundant mid and high level moisture is streaming into NM this morning ahead of this system, though for the time-being, low level moisture remains largely absent. Some top-down moistening will occur during the day today, mainly across the north and west, where a showers and/or a few thunderstorms will occur. Precipitation amounts look to be meager, with snow levels AOA 8kft, thru the day. Meanwhile, across the east, a surface low will deepen to near 994 mb. Though there will be plenty of cloud cover, enough mixing should occur combined with a strong surface pressure gradient for southwest winds to ramp up once again. High winds have yet to materialize early this morning across the South Central Mountains and adjacent highlands, but will keep the High Wind Warning in effect until 9am since the strongest portion of the jet is just starting to move overhead and since KTCS just gusted to 53kts. Starting at 9am, a Wind Advisory has been issued for much of eastern NM as well as the northern Sacramento Mountains. These winds will create difficult fire fighting conditions again for the Three Rivers wildfire, and locals in the South Central Mountains can expect another round of smoke causing reduced visibility. Winds will quickly diminish this evening, but showers will likely persist across much of the area. Models are hinting at some higher QPF amounts across the Gila area on the north/northwest side of the upper low and where deep convergence exists. Snow levels will lower to around 7500 ft overnight, so some snow is likely for the highest peaks of the Gila. Temperatures will cool area wide today by 5 to 12 degrees, but these temperatures will fall further for most locations on Wednesday. A back door cold front will slide down the eastern plains on Wednesday. This front will be the focus for additional precipitation, though enough instability exists for showers or thunderstorms to occur nearly anywhere in the CWA. As the front shifts westward, and the upper low shifts eastward, light to moderate east canyon winds should develop in the Rio Grande Valley by late in the afternoon. LONG TERM...(WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY)... The upper low/trough will be starting to exit New Mexico by Thursday, but models are still significantly different where the closed circulation will be, over far west Texas near the Big Bend or over the Panhandle. If over far west Texas, precipitation could linger longer over south central and southeast New Mexico into Thursday, and the forecast grids are slanted toward that scenario. By Friday, the upper ridge is building over New Mexico, starting a drying and warming trend that persists into early next week. The upper ridge starts to break down Saturday and moreso early next week, leading to stronger westerly flow and well above normal high temperatures Saturday and Sunday. Upped the afternoon winds Saturday through Monday over what was populated as well as lowered dewpoints. An upper trough may cross north central and northeast New Mexico next Monday/Tuesday bringing a cold front to eastern New Mexico but confidence in these features is fairly low so far out in time. && .FIRE WEATHER... ...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE EASTERN PLAINS TODAY... Mid and high level moisture has begin to shift into NM, and top-down moistening may lead to scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms this afternoon across northern and western NM. Across the east, critical fire weather conditions will return as a surface low deepens in SE CO and strong mixing occurs, despite ample cloud cover. A Red Flag Warning remains in effect for the northeast and east central plains today. Precipitation will persist across NM through Wednesday night, with some high mountain snow likely. The focus for precipitation may shift to eastern NM by Wednesday afternoon as a cold front moves into the area. Precipitation may linger across the east central plains into Thursday, but thereafter, dry conditions are expected through at least the weekend. In fact, an upper level ridge will develop over the Desert Southwest, allowing drier air to shift into NM. As the ridge flattens Sunday and the next trough approaches the state on Monday, another round of critical fire weather conditions will be likely each afternoon. 34 && .AVIATION... 06Z TAF CYCLE A few southwest breezes will persist overnight,though stronger winds are expected over the Sacramento Mountains, to include KSRR, through the overnight hours. Highest wind gusts, perhaps up to 50kt, will be most likely between 08z and 13z. Meanwhile, a few sprinkles will be possible across the northwest this morning after 12z, then a few showers and thunderstorms will be possible this afternoon across the north and west. Snow will be possible above 8000 feet. Any precipitation may also result in gusty and erratic winds. Additionally, as a surface low deepens once again across southeast CO, strong southwest winds will re-develop across eastern NM. Gusts between 35 and 45kts will be possible. Last but not least, visibility restrictions due to smoke from the Three Rivers wildfire will be possible from KSRR to KTCC. 34 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Farmington...................... 60 36 65 38 / 50 20 20 0 Dulce........................... 57 30 59 27 / 70 20 40 5 Cuba............................ 58 31 55 30 / 50 30 60 10 Gallup.......................... 56 29 60 29 / 50 30 40 5 El Morro........................ 54 28 55 28 / 60 30 60 20 Grants.......................... 58 29 57 28 / 50 30 60 20 Quemado......................... 54 32 53 32 / 60 40 70 20 Magdalena....................... 61 36 54 35 / 20 30 70 40 Datil........................... 57 33 52 32 / 40 40 80 30 Reserve......................... 60 29 58 32 / 50 50 80 30 Glenwood........................ 64 37 60 40 / 50 50 70 20 Chama........................... 51 27 52 25 / 70 20 60 5 Los Alamos...................... 58 37 54 35 / 40 30 70 20 Pecos........................... 60 34 53 33 / 20 20 80 20 Cerro/Questa.................... 55 33 50 32 / 30 30 70 10 Red River....................... 48 27 42 26 / 30 40 80 20 Angel Fire...................... 53 24 48 26 / 30 20 80 20 Taos............................ 61 28 56 28 / 30 20 60 10 Mora............................ 59 31 50 31 / 20 30 80 20 Espanola........................ 65 37 59 36 / 30 20 60 10 Santa Fe........................ 60 37 54 35 / 20 20 80 20 Santa Fe Airport................ 63 35 56 34 / 20 20 70 20 Albuquerque Foothills........... 64 44 58 41 / 20 20 70 20 Albuquerque Heights............. 65 43 59 41 / 20 20 60 30 Albuquerque Valley.............. 67 41 61 41 / 20 20 60 30 Albuquerque West Mesa........... 66 42 59 40 / 20 20 70 20 Belen........................... 68 39 62 40 / 20 20 60 30 Bernalillo...................... 67 39 60 39 / 20 20 70 20 Bosque Farms.................... 67 38 61 40 / 20 20 60 30 Corrales........................ 68 40 61 40 / 20 30 70 20 Los Lunas....................... 67 38 62 40 / 20 20 60 30 Placitas........................ 64 41 58 39 / 20 20 70 20 Rio Rancho...................... 66 41 60 39 / 20 30 70 20 Socorro......................... 70 41 62 42 / 20 30 60 40 Sandia Park/Cedar Crest......... 60 38 53 36 / 20 30 70 20 Tijeras......................... 63 38 56 37 / 20 20 70 30 Edgewood........................ 61 34 55 34 / 20 20 70 30 Moriarty/Estancia............... 63 30 57 32 / 20 20 70 30 Clines Corners.................. 60 33 53 33 / 10 10 80 30 Mountainair..................... 61 34 55 35 / 20 20 70 40 Gran Quivira.................... 61 34 55 36 / 10 10 70 40 Carrizozo....................... 66 42 59 41 / 10 10 60 40 Ruidoso......................... 60 36 53 34 / 10 10 60 40 Capulin......................... 67 34 48 32 / 5 10 60 20 Raton........................... 70 34 53 33 / 10 10 60 20 Springer........................ 71 35 56 35 / 5 10 60 20 Las Vegas....................... 63 33 52 34 / 10 10 80 30 Clayton......................... 74 43 57 40 / 5 5 60 30 Roy............................. 69 38 57 37 / 5 5 60 20 Conchas......................... 76 43 65 43 / 10 5 70 30 Santa Rosa...................... 72 41 63 42 / 5 5 70 40 Tucumcari....................... 80 46 66 45 / 5 5 60 30 Clovis.......................... 79 47 68 43 / 5 10 40 30 Portales........................ 80 47 70 43 / 5 10 40 30 Fort Sumner..................... 77 46 69 44 / 5 5 50 40 Roswell......................... 82 49 73 47 / 5 10 40 30 Picacho......................... 71 43 63 41 / 10 5 50 40 Elk............................. 67 39 59 37 / 10 5 40 30 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Red Flag Warning from 11 AM this morning to 8 PM MDT this evening for the following zones... NMZ104-108. Wind Advisory from 9 AM this morning to 6 PM MDT this evening for the following zones... NMZ223-224-226>234-239. High Wind Warning until 9 AM MDT this morning for the following zones... NMZ226-239-240. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 311 AM MDT Tue Apr 27 2021 NMZ201>241-281200- Northwest Plateau-Chuska Mountains-Far Northwest Highlands- Northwest Highlands-West Central Plateau-West Central Mountains- West Central Highlands-Southwest Mountains- San Francisco River Valley-Tusas Mountains Including Chama- Jemez Mountains-Glorieta Mesa Including Glorieta Pass- Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains- Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains- East Slopes Sangre de Cristo Mountains-Upper Rio Grande Valley- Espanola Valley-Santa Fe Metro Area- Middle Rio Grande Valley/Albuquerque Metro Area- Lower Rio Grande Valley-Sandia/Manzano Mountains Including Edgewood- Estancia Valley-Central Highlands-South Central Highlands- Upper Tularosa Valley-South Central Mountains- Johnson and Bartlett Mesas Including Raton Pass- 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- San Agustin Plains and Adjacent Lowlands- 311 AM MDT Tue Apr 27 2021 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 from 11 AM to 8 PM MDT for the Northeast and East Central Plains where low humidities combined with strong winds will create critical fire weather conditions. Strong southwest winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts to around 55 mph will extend from the South Central Mountains across much of eastern New Mexico today. The strong winds will create localized areas of reduced visibilities in blowing dust. Smoke from the Three Rivers wildfire will reduce visibilities especially over Lincoln county. Those with respiratory illnesses should take necessary precautions. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday Widespread critical fire weather conditions could return to northern and central New Mexico Sunday and Monday. Well above average high temperatures are possible Saturday and Sunday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotters are encouraged to report wind and wildfire impacts as well as precipitation amounts through the National Weather Service Albuquerque web site at weather.gov/abq or by calling 1.888.386.7637. You can also submit storm reports and photos on our Facebook page or via Twitter using the hashtag nmwx.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
6 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A mesonet station near White Sands Missile Range measured a 60 mph wind gust.
A weather station southeast of Corona measured a peak wind gust of 72 mph.
An ASOS station in Clines Corners measured a peak wind gust of 59 mph.
An ASOS station in Clayton measured several hours of sustained wind speeds of at least 40 mph. The highest sustained wind speed measured in Clayton was 48 mph.
An ASOS station in Clayton measured several observations with wind gusts exceeding 58 mph. The highest wind gust measured in Clayton was 61 mph.
An ASOS station in Tucumcari measured a peak wind gust of 63 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2021Every state in 2021This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, April 2021
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: 946460, 946467, 946462, 946463, 946464, 946465.