There was little change in overall drought conditions across New Mexico during April 2023. Only small expansions of extreme drought was observed in extreme eastern Quay County.
Every event with a place to put it; 8 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.
There was little change in overall drought conditions across New Mexico during April 2023. Only small expansions of extreme drought was observed in extreme eastern Quay County.
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 31, 10:46 PM MST, 1 hour 14 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 1146 PM MDT Fri Mar 31 2023 ...New AVIATION... .SYNOPSIS... Issued at 347 PM MDT Fri Mar 31 2023 Breezy to locally windy conditions along with a warming trend are forecast for the upcoming weekend. Strong to very strong winds return early next week with Tuesday looking like the windiest day during the next week. High temperatures continue to warm early next week, ahead of a strong cold front forecast to move through on Tuesday. Chances for precipitation will likely be confined to the Four Corners area and northern mountains Tuesday. && .SHORT TERM... (This evening through Saturday night) Issued at 211 PM MDT Fri Mar 31 2023 Strong northwest winds have filled in across most of the forecast area this afternoon. Peak gusts have reached 50-60 mph already. These wind speeds are expected to slowly weaken through the rest of today before mostly dying off late this evening. Stronger northwest winds will persist the longest over the northern mountain peaks tonight. Isolated blowing dust has also been reported along I-25 at Wagon Mound and Springer from source regions immediately adjacent to the highways. This hazard will also reduce as winds calm down. Saturday is still forecast to be a fairly pleasant day most areas as highs warm back to near seasonal averages. Breezy to windy southwesterly winds will arise through the northeastern and east- central plains by the afternoon, thanks to a modest 1004mb MLSP surface low developing over eastern CO. Wind speeds will not be nearly as high as they have been the past couple of days. A weak upper level disturbance crosses west to east over southern NM Saturday night, but with little to no sensible weather impacts. && .LONG TERM... (Sunday through Thursday) Issued at 211 PM MDT Fri Mar 31 2023 Dry westerly flow aloft on Sunday gives way to increasing southwest flow aloft Monday. Surface winds ramp up during the day Monday, ahead of a closed low over the Inland NW and northwest Great Basin. The associated cold front and strongest winds gusts are progged to move through western NM late Monday night into early Tuesday morning, and through central and eastern areas Tuesday morning. Any precipitation associated with this system is forecast to remain over the northwest quarter of NM Tuesday morning. Things get very interesting and quite complex Wednesday through late next week. A trailing short-wave trough is forecast to follow the Tuesday trough into the Great Basin late Wednesday into Thursday. The baggy portion of the trough just off the Southern CA coast attempts to close off its own circulation while the low over the Great Basin reacts in kind. The resulting closed low then taps a good deal of Pacific moisture, bringing it up through the Gulf of CA and into southern AZ and NM. Lots of uncertainty will continue with such a complicated scenario but it certainly bears watching. This would be just what the doctor ordered for the eastern plains of NM and for the Southern Plains as a whole with regard to a major wetting precipitation maker. The return of deep convection in the EPAC and an MJO that's come back to life after La Nina lend a bit of credence that this solution is a possibility. && .AVIATION... (06Z TAFS) Issued at 1141 PM MDT Fri Mar 31 2023 Nighttime RGB GOES imagery mainly shows high clouds over the southern part of New Mexico and surface obs show calmer winds over the region as well. TAFs will keep with VFR conditions with winds picking up during the day Saturday. The only other aviation issue will be the LLWS due to westerly winds aloft over the Sangre de Cristo Mtns. We will keep a mention of the LLWS in the KLVS TAF for the morning hours. 39 && .FIRE WEATHER... Issued at 211 PM MDT Fri Mar 31 2023 Critical fire weather conditions continue each day this weekend into next week, favoring areas along and east of the central mountain chain each afternoon. Strong northwesterly winds currently over much of the forecast area this afternoon will steadily subside through the early evening, ending critical fire weather conditions today. Temperatures warm up 10F-15F degrees most areas Saturday with much weaker wind speeds. However, breezy to windy southwesterly winds through the northeastern highlands and plains will be strong enough to combine with MinRH dipping to below 10 percent to allow for another round of critical fire weather conditions Saturday afternoon. The Fire Weather Watch will be upgraded to a Red Flag Warning for these two zones as a result. Zonal westerly flow arrives Sunday with wind speeds strengthening most areas again. Temperatures warm several more degrees most areas with another round of MinRHs dipping to the low teens and single- digits. However, wind speeds look to reach critical thresholds along and east of the central mountain chain where fuels are also more receptive. Given the forecast Sunday shows more certain conditions for critical fire weather compared with Saturday, have joined our neighboring offices in issuing a Fire Weather Watch for the Northeast Highlands, Northeast Plains, Central Highlands, and East- Central Plains. The weather pattern will become even more susceptible to producing critical fire weather conditions Monday with a strong upper level storm system entering the western U.S. and producing strong, warm, and dry southwesterly flow over NM. The combination of near to above normal temperatures, strong southwesterly winds, and MinRH in the single-digits to low teens looks to produce widespread critical fire weather conditions across northern and central NM below significant snow pack and where fuels are still receptive and green up has not occurred. A sharp temperature drop of 20F-25F looks to occur behind the Pacific cold front by Tuesday. However, the influx of much drier air looks to keep humidity in the low teens to single-digits again Tuesday. This will, along with persistent strong westerly winds will produce yet another day of critical fire weather along and east of the central mountain chain Tuesday. Calmer winds look to finally arrive Wednesday bringing a respite to the stretch of critical fire weather. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Farmington...................... 27 59 30 65 / 0 0 0 0 Dulce........................... 16 53 22 60 / 0 0 0 0 Cuba............................ 25 56 31 61 / 0 0 0 0 Gallup.......................... 20 61 26 63 / 0 0 0 0 El Morro........................ 24 59 27 62 / 0 0 0 0 Grants.......................... 19 63 21 66 / 0 0 0 0 Quemado......................... 27 63 31 66 / 0 0 0 0 Magdalena....................... 30 65 35 70 / 0 0 0 0 Datil........................... 28 62 31 66 / 0 0 0 0 Reserve......................... 25 65 26 72 / 0 0 0 0 Glenwood........................ 32 69 33 73 / 0 0 0 0 Chama........................... 14 45 22 52 / 0 0 0 0 Los Alamos...................... 28 55 36 61 / 0 0 0 0 Pecos........................... 29 57 35 62 / 0 0 0 0 Cerro/Questa.................... 28 52 36 57 / 0 0 0 0 Red River....................... 18 46 27 49 / 0 0 0 0 Angel Fire...................... 12 49 19 50 / 0 0 0 0 Taos............................ 17 56 22 60 / 0 0 0 0 Mora............................ 24 58 33 61 / 0 0 0 0 Espanola........................ 25 62 31 69 / 0 0 0 0 Santa Fe........................ 30 56 36 63 / 0 0 0 0 Santa Fe Airport................ 27 60 33 65 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque Foothills........... 35 62 42 70 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque Heights............. 32 64 39 73 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque Valley.............. 26 66 31 75 / 0 0 0 0 Albuquerque West Mesa........... 31 64 37 74 / 0 0 0 0 Belen........................... 21 68 29 76 / 0 0 0 0 Bernalillo...................... 29 64 36 73 / 0 0 0 0 Bosque Farms.................... 20 67 26 75 / 0 0 0 0 Corrales........................ 30 64 36 74 / 0 0 0 0 Los Lunas....................... 20 67 28 75 / 0 0 0 0 Placitas........................ 32 61 38 68 / 0 0 0 0 Rio Rancho...................... 30 63 36 73 / 0 0 0 0 Socorro......................... 32 71 38 79 / 0 0 0 0 Sandia Park/Cedar Crest......... 30 56 37 63 / 0 0 0 0 Tijeras......................... 31 60 36 66 / 0 0 0 0 Edgewood........................ 26 61 33 67 / 0 0 0 0 Moriarty/Estancia............... 21 63 28 68 / 0 0 0 0 Clines Corners.................. 26 61 33 64 / 0 0 0 0 Mountainair..................... 27 61 34 68 / 0 0 0 0 Gran Quivira.................... 28 62 35 68 / 0 0 0 0 Carrizozo....................... 35 65 41 72 / 0 0 0 0 Ruidoso......................... 29 60 35 65 / 0 0 0 0 Capulin......................... 22 62 32 66 / 0 0 0 0 Raton........................... 18 65 26 69 / 0 0 0 0 Springer........................ 18 68 26 70 / 0 0 0 0 Las Vegas....................... 23 63 31 67 / 0 0 0 0 Clayton......................... 28 67 37 75 / 0 0 0 0 Roy............................. 27 67 34 71 / 0 0 0 0 Conchas......................... 28 74 36 78 / 0 0 0 0 Santa Rosa...................... 30 72 36 73 / 0 0 0 0 Tucumcari....................... 29 75 39 82 / 0 0 0 0 Clovis.......................... 32 73 40 80 / 0 0 0 0 Portales........................ 31 75 40 82 / 0 0 0 0 Fort Sumner..................... 31 73 36 80 / 0 0 0 0 Roswell......................... 35 78 42 89 / 0 0 0 0 Picacho......................... 33 73 41 78 / 0 0 0 0 Elk............................. 32 71 40 76 / 0 0 0 0 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Red Flag Warning from noon to 8 PM MDT Saturday for NMZ104-123. Fire Weather Watch from Sunday morning through Sunday evening for NMZ104-123-125-126. && SHORT TERM...39 LONG TERM....33 AVIATION...39
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
1032 PM MDT FRI MAR 31 2023
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1215 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 8 S HAYDEN 35.86N 103.27W
03/31/2023 M62 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC49 AMISTAD.
1000 AM NON-TSTM WND GST SEDAN 36.15N 103.13W
03/31/2023 M61 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC51 SEDAN.
0245 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 11 SE VAUGHN 34.48N 105.08W
03/31/2023 M61 MPH GUADALUPE NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC40 SE VAUGHN.
&&PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
1037 PM MDT FRI MAR 31 2023
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0917 AM NON-TSTM WND GST 3 ENE CLOVIS 34.42N 103.16W
03/31/2023 M62 MPH CURRY NM MESONET
MESONET STATION GW0819 CLOVIS.
&&PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBUQUERQUE NM
1038 PM MDT FRI MAR 31 2023
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1133 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 4 WSW TUCUMCARI 35.15N 103.80W
03/31/2023 M52 MPH QUAY NM MESONET
MESONET STATION UP441 TUCUMCARI 4 W (UPR).
1128 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 3 ENE CLOVIS 34.42N 103.16W
03/31/2023 M49 MPH CURRY NM MESONET
MESONET STATION GW0819 CLOVIS.
1056 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 2 NNW TEXICO 34.42N 103.07W
03/31/2023 M43 MPH CURRY NM AWOS
AWOS STATION KCVN CLOVIS MUNI AIRPORT.
0910 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 14 NW SEDAN 36.27N 103.32W
03/31/2023 M42 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC52 SW CLAYTON.
1034 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 7 WSW ENCINO 34.63N 105.57W
03/31/2023 M42 MPH TORRANCE NM PUBLIC
1050 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 2 SW DORA 33.92N 103.36W
03/31/2023 M42 MPH ROOSEVELT NM MESONET
MESONET STATION 53 DORA 2 SW.
0753 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 7 E TUCUMCARI 35.18N 103.60W
03/31/2023 M41 MPH QUAY NM ASOS
ASOS STATION KTCC TUCUMCARI MUNI AIRPORT.
1055 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 1 E CLAYTON 36.45N 103.15W
03/31/2023 M41 MPH UNION NM ASOS
ASOS STATION KCAO CLAYTON MUNI AIRPARK.
0835 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 7 SW GLENRIO 35.11N 103.12W
03/31/2023 M40 MPH QUAY NM MESONET
MESONET STATION 107 ENDEE 2 SW.
0925 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 8 S HAYDEN 35.86N 103.27W
03/31/2023 M40 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC49 AMISTAD.
1146 AM HIGH SUST WINDS 5 S CHILILI 34.82N 106.23W
03/31/2023 M40 MPH TORRANCE NM MESONET
MESONET STATION DVI00161 TAJIQUE 5 NNE.
0155 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 1 S CANNON AIR FORCE BA 34.37N 103.32W
03/31/2023 M63 MPH CURRY NM ASOS
ASOS STATION KCVS CANNON AFB.
0917 AM NON-TSTM WND GST 3 ENE CLOVIS 34.42N 103.16W
03/31/2023 M62 MPH CURRY NM MESONET
MESONET STATION GW0819 CLOVIS.
1215 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 8 S HAYDEN 35.86N 103.27W
03/31/2023 M62 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC49 AMISTAD.
1000 AM NON-TSTM WND GST SEDAN 36.15N 103.13W
03/31/2023 M61 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC51 SEDAN.
0245 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 11 SE VAUGHN 34.48N 105.08W
03/31/2023 M61 MPH GUADALUPE NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC40 SE VAUGHN.
0914 AM NON-TSTM WND GST 4 WNW MELROSE 34.46N 103.69W
03/31/2023 M60 MPH CURRY NM PUBLIC
0840 AM NON-TSTM WND GST 14 NW SEDAN 36.27N 103.32W
03/31/2023 M59 MPH UNION NM MESONET
MESONET STATION NMC52 SW CLAYTON.
0121 PM NON-TSTM WND GST RATON CREWS AIRPORT 36.73N 104.50W
03/31/2023 M59 MPH COLFAX NM ASOS
ASOS STATION KRTN RATON CREWS AIRPORT.
0913 AM NON-TSTM WND GST 1 E CLAYTON 36.45N 103.15W
03/31/2023 M58 MPH UNION NM ASOS
ASOS STATION KCAO CLAYTON MUNI AIRPARK.
&&
34The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
8 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Severe drought conditions from October 2022 persisted through April 2023.
Severe drought conditions persisted through April 2023.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from October 2022 continued through April 2023. A very small area of exceptional drought between Clayton and Sedan persisted through April.
Severe drought conditions persisted through April 2023.
Severe drought conditions from October 2022 persisted in the eastern section of the county through April 2023. Extreme drought was introduced to the far eastern fringe of the county along the TX border.
Severe drought conditions from October 2022 persisted through April 2023. A very small area of extreme drought was introduced in the counties far southwestern and southeastern corners.
Severe and extreme drought persisted through April 2023 and even expanded slightly to cover the far northern section of the county.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from October 2022 persisted through April 2023.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2023Every state in 2023This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, April 2023
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: 1089398, 1089399, 1089400, 1089401, 1089402, 1089403, 1089404, 1089405.