Drought conditions across northern and central New Mexico continued to improve during the month of July 2021. A very active monsoon pattern led to daily rounds of scattered to widespread showers and thunderstorms across the area.
Every event with a place to put it; 38 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.
Drought conditions across northern and central New Mexico continued to improve during the month of July 2021. A very active monsoon pattern led to daily rounds of scattered to widespread showers and thunderstorms across the area. Extreme to exceptional drought conditions improved to about 37 percent of the state with about 9 percent deemed exceptional drought. The most noted drought improvement was across western New Mexico which has been plagued by exceptional drought conditions since September 2020. Numerous days of beneficial thunderstorm activity produced precipitation totals ranging from 3 to 6 inches with locally higher amounts. Eastern New Mexico also continued to see significant drought improvements where 2 to 5 inches of rainfall was common. Most counties across far eastern New Mexico even improved to no drought to abnormally dry conditions. Unfortunately, exceptional drought conditions continued across the Four Corners where precipitation totals were generally less than half an inch.
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 Jun 30, 10:48 PM MST, 1 hour 12 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 1148 PM MDT Wed Jun 30 2021 .AVIATION... 06Z TAF CYCLE A mixed bag of VFR down to IFR conditions prevail, with widespread mountain obscurations from north central through south central NM. Further deterioration is likely overnight, with IFR conditions becoming more common. A round of daytime heating triggered convection may impact area terminals Thursday afternoon/evening with short lived MVFR conditions and heavy rain. 11 && .PREV DISCUSSION...245 PM MDT Wed Jun 30 2021... .SYNOPSIS... An active period will continue for the next week with daily rounds of showers and thunderstorms. Slow moving storms will increase the potential for heavy rainfall and flash flooding. After today, expect more breaks in the clouds allowing for temperatures to gradually warm. High temperatures will be within a few degrees of normal by early next week. && .DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM...(TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT)... Vast amounts of moisture remain over NM again today, thanks in part to Tropical Storm Enrique, northern Mexico convection and an upper low approaching the Big Bend of TX. Deep moisture will continue in the short term, with PW's around 0.75 inches in the far northwest, climbing steadily to 1.50 inches in the far southeast. Showers are popping up across much of the area this afternoon with a few storms in Chaves and Roosevelt counties. Showers and isolated storms will continue into the night, with a new batch developing Thursday. With an upper high approaching from the east we should get longer breaks from the clouds to warm temperatures quite a bit Thursday. Of course that means an increase in instability and the risk of thunderstorms with heavy rain. Also, the storms will be moving slower with the high heading our way. So, we have extended the Flash Flood Watch through 600 PM MDT Thursday. A back door cold front Thursday night will bring in a fresh batch of low level moisture to the east. LONG TERM...(FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY)... A back door cold front is expected to ooze into northeast NM Friday morning. With it, another increase in moisture is expected. Upslope flow combined with some morning instability could yield showers and thunderstorms starting early in the morning for northeast and east central NM. With daytime heating, showers and thunderstorms should erupt over much of higher terrain by afternoon as well as expand across eastern NM pending where the back door front ends up. Storm motion will remain slow and erratic with the upper high overhead and moving toward the Four Corners area. This will continue the concern for heavy rainfall and flash flooding. The upper high will remain over or just west of the Four Corners region over the holiday weekend and temperatures will warm. Though somewhat drier air may wrap around the high into northwest NM on Sunday, little change in shower and thunderstorm coverage is expected. Storm motions will be toward the south around 10 mph. Daily rounds of showers and thunderstorms will continue into early next week with the upper high remaining to the west of NM and abundant moisture remaining in place. As soils becoming increasingly saturated, flooding will become more and more of a concern. CHJ/34 && .FIRE WEATHER... Critical fire weather conditions will remain absent from the forecast for the foreseeable future. The Monsoon is in full swing now with much higher humidity, below normal temperatures and good chances for wetting rain continuing into at least early next week. Wetting rain will favor central and eastern portions of the area, but even far northwest New Mexico will benefit from some rain through at least Friday. Flash flooding on/near recent burn scars will increasingly become a threat as we head into the late week and holiday weekend. Even though an upper level high will move in from the east late this week and settle over the Four Corners, showers and storms will still occur over most of NM, aside from perhaps the far northwest. CHJ && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Flash Flood Watch through Thursday afternoon for the following zones... NMZ208-209-220-224>226-238>241. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 307 AM MDT Wed Jun 30 2021 NMZ201>241-011100- 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- 307 AM MDT Wed Jun 30 2021 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of north and central New Mexico. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight A continued threat of locally heavy rainfall and flash flooding will persist once again today, particularly for locations south of Highway 60/380. A Flash Flood Watch is in effect through tonight for southern portions of the area. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Thursday through Tuesday The threat of locally heavy rain through the end of the work week and into the holiday weekend with an active Monsoon pattern in place. The threat for flash flooding will be highest in and near recent burn scars. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotters are encouraged to report rainfall amounts and any flooding through the National Weather Service Albuquerque web site at weather.gov/abq or by calling 1.888.386.7637. 33
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
38 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July although exceptional drought conditions did decrease in area.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with extreme drought conditions across the area.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe to extreme drought conditions across the area.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe to extreme drought conditions across the area.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe to extreme drought conditions across the area.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July although exceptional drought conditions decreased in the area.
Severe to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions across the area.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions across the area.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with no drought conditions to abnormally dry across the area.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe drought conditions across the area.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe to extreme drought conditions across the area.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions across the area.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe drought conditions across far western Roosevelt County.
Severe to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July. Severe to extreme drought conditions continued across far northern Chaves County as well as far southern Chaves County. Central Chaves County improved to no drought to abnormally dry drought conditions.
Exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with extreme drought conditions across the area.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe drought conditions across the area.
Exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with extreme drought conditions across the area.
Exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with extreme drought conditions across the area.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe drought conditions across southern portions of the area.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe to extreme drought conditions across the area.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe to extreme drought conditions across the area.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe drought conditions across the area.
Extreme drought conditions from June 2021 improved in July with severe drought conditions across the area.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July. Southern portions of the area did improve to moderate drought conditions.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
Severe drought conditions from June 2021 continued in July.
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, July 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: 964048, 964049, 964050, 964051, 964052, 964053, 964054, 964055, 964056, 964057, 964058, 964059, 964060, 964061, 964062, 964063, 964064, 964065, 964066, 964067, 964068, 964069, 964070, 964071, 964072, 964073, 964074, 964075, 964076, 964077, 964078, 964079, 964080, 964081, 964082, 964083, 964084, 964085.