During the evening of July 24th, a decaying thunderstorm produced a microburst wind gust that caused damage to a residential solar array just southwest of Moriarty.
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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.
During the evening of July 24th, a decaying thunderstorm produced a microburst wind gust that caused damage to a residential solar array just southwest of Moriarty.
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 Jul 24, 5:10 PM MST, 40 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 610 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023 ...New AVIATION... .SYNOPSIS... Issued at 146 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023 ...NEAR-RECORD OR RECORD-BREAKING HEAT CONTINUING THROUGH MID WEEK... Temperatures are heating up, a trend that will persist with the hottest readings expected Tuesday and Wednesday. Many locations across northern and central New Mexico will reach close to, or even exceed daily record high temperatures each day. The abnormally hot conditions will pose a high risk of heat exhaustion and heat stroke, especially for those working or spending time outdoors. It will be critical to stay hydrated, limit outdoor activity during the heat of the afternoon hours, and check up on neighbors and relatives to ensure they are staying adequately cooled. Showers and thunderstorms will tend to be sparse, offering minimal rainfall with only a slight increase in moisture by the latter part of the week. The best chances for rain will stay over the southwestern and northern mountains of the state. && .SHORT TERM... (This evening through Tuesday night) Issued at 146 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023 Near record to record heat remains over northern and central NM today through Wednesday. With a 600dm H5 dome of high pressure centered near the CO San Juans and apparent abundance of mid-level dry air on WV imagery over southwestern NM, afternoon storms have had a difficult time developing over the high terrain thus far. Still, isolated to scattered convection will favor the northern mountains with small rain footprints as they will struggle to drift out over the surrounding highlands. More erratic gusty winds than rain will likely be the result of these cells this afternoon. Highs reaching 100 to above in lower elevation areas of the Rio Grande Valley and Four Corners area and low 100s to near 106F across the eastern plains will be the main hazard of concern today. This remains true Tuesday as the 600dm H5 high drifts southward over the north-central mountains of NM. Afternoon convection will again struggle to get going but will be slightly more robust than today's round of storms. Storm cells will be slow-movers and will have the potential to drop locally moderate rainfall. Meanwhile another round of near-record to record heat envelopes nearly the entire state. Another Heat Advisory will be issued for the same areas of the Rio Grande Valley from Espanola through Santa Fe to Albuquerque, Farmington, and the eastern plains along the Pecos and Canadian River Valleys. && .LONG TERM... (Wednesday through Sunday) Issued at 146 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023 Dome of high pressure remains centered over NM and outstretched over adjacent states on Wednesday with mid tropospheric pressure heights running between 597-599 decameters. This will keep any robust subtropical moisture choked off from the state while we continue to cook in near-record to record-breaking heat. More Heat Advisories will likely be needed, but will hold off on any issuance just yet. Thunderstorms will be fewer than climatological expectations, but what cells do develop will remain concentrated over the southwestern and Sangre de Cristo mountains. The upper high will stretch and elongate on a west-east axis into Thursday with a subtle weakening of only a decameter or so. Higher PWATs greater than an inch would stay situated either side of NM with only a faint ribbon of 0.8 to 1.0 inch values stretching from the southwest to northeast corner of our forecast area late Thursday, offering a slight uptick in storm coverage. Storms would gain a bit more rainfall efficiency with this minor increase in moisture, but many storms will still likely produce underwhelming amounts. The high stretches more broadly over the southern states into Friday, but a centroid looks to remain situated over NM, keeping a hindrance to deeper moisture intrusions. Any remnant moisture from Thursday would get recycled with slow-moving storms yet again favoring the southwestern and northern mountains. High temperatures would run a degree or two cooler Friday afternoon. The high looks to carry on more broadly over south central states into the weekend, but even with an east southeasterly wind component aloft over NM, no appreciable slugs of moisture or easterly waves have yet been modeled to benefit the Land of Enchantment. && .AVIATION... (00Z TAFS) Issued at 551 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023 Isolated showers and thunderstorms will continue north of I-40 through early evening before dissipating. Tuesday's round of showers and thunderstorms will be very similar with regard to coverage and intensity. Isolated showers and storms will be most likely over the northern and west-central mountains. Most convective activity Tuesday afternoon will be relatively weak with strong and gusty winds the main impact to aviation. && .FIRE WEATHER... Issued at 146 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023 Near-record to record heat continues today through Wednesday as the dome of high pressure remains over the region. Highs reaching into the 100s will be common place for lower elevation locations. High temperatures do trend cooler by Thursday into next weekend. Prevailing winds will be light to breezy, mostly out of the south through the eastern plains during the day. Afternoon storm coverage will be quite paltry today, increasing slightly each day through the work week. The main concern will be slow-storm motions allowing for locally heavy rainfall to threaten flash flooding, especially over recent burn scars. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Farmington...................... 64 101 64 100 / 10 5 10 10 Dulce........................... 51 97 54 95 / 20 5 10 30 Cuba............................ 60 96 60 93 / 20 20 20 30 Gallup.......................... 58 98 58 95 / 20 20 30 50 El Morro........................ 57 94 56 91 / 20 30 40 50 Grants.......................... 56 97 57 94 / 20 30 30 40 Quemado......................... 59 95 60 93 / 10 40 40 60 Magdalena....................... 66 96 66 93 / 5 20 20 30 Datil........................... 62 92 61 91 / 10 30 30 50 Reserve......................... 54 97 59 96 / 10 40 30 60 Glenwood........................ 62 101 64 99 / 10 20 20 50 Chama........................... 51 91 51 90 / 20 5 10 40 Los Alamos...................... 68 94 65 89 / 20 30 20 40 Pecos........................... 64 94 62 92 / 20 30 20 40 Cerro/Questa.................... 51 91 51 90 / 30 30 10 50 Red River....................... 49 84 46 81 / 30 40 20 50 Angel Fire...................... 41 85 40 84 / 30 40 20 50 Taos............................ 57 95 56 93 / 20 30 10 40 Mora............................ 57 92 56 88 / 20 40 20 50 Espanola........................ 64 101 59 98 / 20 20 20 30 Santa Fe........................ 67 96 65 94 / 20 30 20 30 Santa Fe Airport................ 64 99 64 98 / 20 20 20 20 Albuquerque Foothills........... 74 100 72 99 / 10 10 20 20 Albuquerque Heights............. 71 101 72 101 / 10 10 20 10 Albuquerque Valley.............. 65 102 64 103 / 10 10 20 10 Albuquerque West Mesa........... 72 101 72 101 / 10 10 20 10 Belen........................... 62 103 64 103 / 5 10 20 10 Bernalillo...................... 70 103 68 103 / 10 10 20 10 Bosque Farms.................... 61 103 61 102 / 10 10 20 10 Corrales........................ 71 103 70 102 / 10 10 20 10 Los Lunas....................... 62 103 62 102 / 10 10 20 10 Placitas........................ 71 101 69 100 / 10 10 20 20 Rio Rancho...................... 70 102 71 100 / 10 10 20 10 Socorro......................... 69 104 72 103 / 0 5 10 10 Sandia Park/Cedar Crest......... 67 93 65 93 / 10 10 20 20 Tijeras......................... 68 97 67 95 / 10 10 20 20 Edgewood........................ 63 98 64 96 / 20 10 20 20 Moriarty/Estancia............... 55 99 62 97 / 10 10 20 20 Clines Corners.................. 62 94 63 93 / 20 10 20 20 Mountainair..................... 64 96 65 95 / 10 10 20 20 Gran Quivira.................... 64 96 67 95 / 5 10 10 20 Carrizozo....................... 67 96 70 98 / 5 5 5 10 Ruidoso......................... 59 88 61 90 / 5 20 0 20 Capulin......................... 62 93 60 90 / 10 20 20 30 Raton........................... 60 97 59 94 / 20 20 20 30 Springer........................ 60 100 59 97 / 20 20 20 30 Las Vegas....................... 61 96 60 93 / 20 20 20 40 Clayton......................... 69 100 68 97 / 10 5 5 10 Roy............................. 64 99 63 95 / 20 10 10 20 Conchas......................... 71 106 69 101 / 20 5 10 10 Santa Rosa...................... 69 103 71 98 / 20 10 10 10 Tucumcari....................... 71 106 72 101 / 20 0 0 0 Clovis.......................... 70 102 70 101 / 5 0 0 0 Portales........................ 72 104 72 103 / 5 0 0 0 Fort Sumner..................... 70 105 73 102 / 10 0 0 0 Roswell......................... 74 107 73 106 / 0 0 0 0 Picacho......................... 67 100 69 99 / 0 5 0 10 Elk............................. 62 94 65 94 / 0 10 0 10 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Heat Advisory until 8 PM MDT this evening for NMZ201-217-219-231- 232-234-237-238. Heat Advisory from noon to 8 PM MDT Tuesday for NMZ201-207- 217>219-231-232-234-237-238. && SHORT TERM...24 LONG TERM....52 AVIATION...33
Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Albuquerque NM
234 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1130 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Capulin 36.74N 103.99W
07/23/2023 Union NM CO-OP Observer
Strong south wind blew through Capulin
breaking tree branches up to 6 inches in
diameter. Blew over a shed in town.
&&
44Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Albuquerque NM
554 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023
NMZ204-211-250030-
Northwest Highlands-Jemez Mountains-
554 PM MDT Mon Jul 24 2023
...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL IMPACT PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN RIO ARRIBA
AND NORTH CENTRAL SANDOVAL COUNTIES THROUGH 630 PM MDT...
At 553 PM MDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm near
Cuba, moving north at 10 mph.
HAZARD...Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph and half inch hail.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
unsecured objects. Minor damage to outdoor objects is
possible.
Locations impacted include...
Cuba and La Jara.
This includes Highway 550 between Mile Markers 53 and 74.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
If threatening weather approaches your area, take shelter in a sturdy
building.
&&
LAT...LON 3585 10683 3586 10705 3612 10710 3611 10676
TIME...MOT...LOC 2353Z 181DEG 10KT 3593 10694
MAX HAIL SIZE...0.50 IN
MAX WIND GUST...55 MPH
44The Albuquerque radar (KABX), 69 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:50 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A thunderstorm downburst lifted a large solar panel unit and its concrete pillars out of the ground and tossed it several feet away. Many of the panels and the steel frame were damaged or destroyed.
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, July 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: 1103709.