New Mexico, 2025

Dust Storm in New Mexico, April 18, 2025

April 18, 2025 · NWS EPZ · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A deep, slow moving upper trough was moving out of the Great Basin and towards the Four Corners region. A 125+ knot jet was located over far west Texas and south central New Mexico which brought wind gusts over 40 mph and created widespread areas of blowing dust with visibilities under a quarter mile.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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 EPZ wrote it up.

A deep, slow moving upper trough was moving out of the Great Basin and towards the Four Corners region. A 125+ knot jet was located over far west Texas and south central New Mexico which brought wind gusts over 40 mph and created widespread areas of blowing dust with visibilities under a quarter mile.

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 El Paso, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 18, 4:38 AM MST, 5 hours 47 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 18, 4:38 AM MST, 5 hours 47 minutes before
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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 dust storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Dust Storm, Southern Dona Ana County/Mesilla Valley

When
April 18, 10:25 AM MST to 3:00 PM MST
Where
Southern Dona Ana County/Mesilla Valley forecast zone
Reported by
NWS Employee
Coordinates
32.353, -106.833 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blowing dust reduced visibilities to under a quarter mile near exit 162 on Interstate 10. Similar visibilities were reported around the campus of New Mexico State University.

Dust Storm, Southwest Desert/Mimbres Basin

When
April 18, 1:21 PM MST to 3:30 PM MST
Where
Southwest Desert/Mimbres Basin forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
32.460, -108.066 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Reports of near zero visibility between mile markers 94 and 98 on Highway 9 in Luna County.

What these are

Dust Storm
Blowing dust that reduced visibility to a quarter mile or less.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in New Mexico in 2025Every state in 2025This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, April 2025

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: 1250694, 1250696.