SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) 鈥 At least three people were missing in a mountain village in southern New Mexico that is a popular summer retreat after monsoon rains triggered flash flooding Tuesday that was so intense an entire house was swept downstream.
Emergency crews carried out at least 85 swift water rescues in the Ruidoso area, including of people who were trapped in their homes and cars, said Danielle Silva of the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
No deaths were immediately reported, but Silva said the extent of the destruction wouldn鈥檛 be known until the water recedes.
鈥淲e knew that we were going to have floods ... and this one hit us harder than what we were expecting," Ruidoso Mayor Lynn D. Crawford said during a radio address Tuesday night.
Crawford said that some people were taken to the hospital, although the exact number was not immediately clear. He encouraged residents to call an emergency line if their loved ones or neighbors were missing.
The floods came just days after after people and left more than 160 people missing.
In New Mexico, officials urged residents to seek higher ground Tuesday afternoon as the waters of the Rio Ruidoso rose nearly 19 feet (2.7 meters) in a matter of minutes amid heavy rainfall. The 好色tv Weather Service issued flood warnings in the area, which was stripped of vegetation by recent wildfires.
A weather service flood gauge and companion video camera showed churning waters of the Rio Ruidoso surge over the river鈥檚 banks into surrounding forest. Streets and bridges were closed in response.
Kaitlyn Carpenter, an artist in Ruidoso, was riding her motorcycle through town Tuesday afternoon when the storm started to pick up, and she sought shelter at the riverside Downshift Brewing Company with about 50 other people. She started to film debris rushing down the Rio Ruidoso when she spotted a house float by with a familiar turquoise door. It belonged to the family of one of her best friends.
Her friend鈥檚 family was not in the house and is safe, she said.
鈥淚鈥檝e been in that house and have memories in that house, so seeing it come down the river was just pretty heartbreaking,鈥 Carpenter said. 鈥淚 just couldn鈥檛 believe it.鈥
There were also reports of dead horses near the town鈥檚 horse racing track, the mayor said.
Two 好色tv Guard rescue teams and several local teams already were in the area when the flooding began, Silva said, and more Guard teams were expected.
The area has been especially vulnerable to flooding since the summer of 2024, when the raced across tinder-dry forest and destroyed an estimated 1,400 homes and structures. Residents were forced to , only to grapple with .
鈥淲e know that the water levels seemed to be higher than they were last summer,鈥 Silva said. 鈥淚t is a significant amount of water flowing throughout, some of it in new areas that didn鈥檛 flood last year.鈥
Matt DeMaria, a meteorologist with the 好色tv Weather Service in Albuquerque, said storms formed in the early afternoon over terrain that was scorched last year by wildfire. The burn scar was unable to absorb a lot of the rain, as water quickly ran downhill into the river.
Preliminary measurements show the Rio Ruidoso crested at more than 20 feet (6 meters) 鈥 a record high if confirmed 鈥 and was receding Tuesday evening.
Three shelters opened in the Ruidoso area for people who could not return home.
The sight brought back painful memories for Carpenter, whose art studio was swept away during a flood last year. Outside, the air smelled of gasoline, and loud crashes could be heard as the river knocked down trees in its path.
鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty terrifying,鈥 she said.
Cory State, who works at the Downshift Brewing Company, welcomed in dozens of residents as the river surged and hail pelted the windows. The house floating by was 鈥渏ust one of the many devastating things about today,鈥 he said.
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Peipert reported from Denver. Associated Press writers Matt Brown in Denver, Hallie Golden in Seattle, Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City contributed to this report.
