Latest news with #RioRuidoso
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Children cling to ceiling fan as Ruidoso, NM flooding destroys RV park, family home
RUIDOSO, New Mexico — Jason Fulcher picked through the remains of his home along the banks of the Rio Ruidoso, salvaging what he could the day after a flash flood ripped through his home and the RV park he owns. The Riverview RV Park on busy Suddreth Drive was nearly full the afternoon of Tuesday, July 8, before what Fulcher described as a big wave of water and mud crashed through the campsites. The fast-moving water swept away six people, RVs, vehicles and the whole front of Fulcher's home. Fulcher and his wife, Lindsey, watched in horror from a hill overlooking the park as the water rushed by, unable to do anything for their two children who were trapped inside their house. The children, ages 7 and 13, clung to a ceiling fan as they floated on a mattress in the rising waters. The rush of muddy water eventually broke away from the front of the Fulchers' house. "We stood on top of this hill watching my house crumble around my children while we were on the phone with 911," said Fulcher as he fought back tears. "They were on the phone with their mom, praying to God. And you're just helpless. You can't do anything." Other guests, including Rod Downing, a 69-year-old from near Waco, Texas, who had arrived two days prior with his wife and puppy, described a chaotic scene. The two were pinned in their trailer by another RV that had been pushed by the floodwater. "There were people screaming," he said. "It's something I don't want to ever live through again." More: 'There are no borders': Mexican search and rescue teams join relief efforts in Texas Downing waited for the water to recede and escaped from the RV through an emergency window. Fulcher's children and other guests at the campsite, including Downing and his wife, were saved by local search and rescue teams. One guest had climbed up a tree to escape the water. But not everyone at the RV park was as lucky as the Fulcher and Downing families. An El Paso family, who had arrived two days prior from El Paso, Texas, were swept away by the quickly moving water. Charlotte and Sebastian Trotter, 4 and 7 years old, were found dead. A statement released by Fort Bliss confirmed that the family was from the Army post. The soldier and his spouse were seriously injured and are being treated at a hospital in Texas, authorities said. Jerry Stark and Tim Feagin — both of whom worked and lived at the campsite — were also carried away in the flood. Feagin was killed in the flood, Fulcher said. Stark was located and taken to a hospital in Ruidoso. The rushing waters quickly spilled over the Rio Ruidoso's banks, washing homes away and damaging structures along the river banks. The flood moved quickly down Sudderth Drive before cutting through Fulcher's and his neighbor's land. "We experienced flooding last year due to the burn scars, but it was nothing like yesterday," Fulcher said. "(The water was) faster than you can run because the people that were running got overtaken by it." More: Why do ICE agents wear masks and how it's eroding public confidence in some communities The flash flood on Tuesday, July 8, was a historic event, with the water cresting at 20 feet high, authorities said during a news briefing on the flood. Previous flash floods were measured at 15 feet. "We just saw some of the worst flooding I've ever seen," Ruidoso Fire Chief Cade Hall said. "I've lived here my entire life and that was a wall of water that we've never seen before." The Ruidoso Fire Department quickly moved into action as the waters rose. There were at least 65 people saved by the fire department's swift water operations response, Hall said during the news briefing on Wednesday, July 9. Ruidoso officials are still assessing the impacts of the flood, but Michael Martinez, Ruidoso's deputy village manager, estimates that at least 89 homes in the Upper Canyon region of the mountain town were damaged. The village of Ruidoso has submitted a request for the federal government to make a disaster declaration, Mayor Lynn Crawford said. The clean up at the Riverview RV Park began the morning following the disaster. Fulcher picked around the remains of his home along the banks of the river, salvaging what he could. He found a few tools and a YouTube plaque that he had had made for his son to celebrate his channel. Downing also collected items from his RV. His Ford pickup truck was one of the vehicles swept downriver. Volunteers also arrived from the surrounding area to assist in moving the RVs that were damaged and had become entangled with each other and trees. More: DHS places new limitations on congressional oversight, as concern grows over ICE facilities The house will have to be bulldozed, Fulcher said. He explained that his insurance will likely not cover the cost of rebuilding. And now he has to figure out what to do with the campsite reservations that had been made for the rest of the summer. "But at the end of the day, I've got my wife and my kids," Fulcher said, "but I wish we could say the same for everybody that was here." More: For the first time in decades, the US-Mexico border is silent. Here's why Jeff Abbott covers the border for the El Paso Times and can be reached at:jdabbott@ @palabrasdeabajo on Twitter or @ on Bluesky. This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Ruidoso, New Mexico flooding survivors recount deadly disaster
The Independent
10-07-2025
- Climate
- The Independent
New Mexico village rebuilds all over again after record-breaking flash flood kills 3
The mountain village of Ruidoso returned to the grim rituals of rebuilding after flash flooding and a deadly natural disaster, just one year after wildfire and intense flooding reshaped the popular vacation getaway and its surroundings. Broken tree limbs, twisted metal, crumpled cars and muddy debris remained as crews worked to clear roads and culverts in the wake of Tuesday's flash flood that killed three people — including two children — and significantly damaged as many as 50 homes, with one home carried away entirely. Tracy Haragan, a Ruidoso native on the verge of retirement, watched from his home as a surging river carried away the contents of nine nearby residences. 'You watched everything they owned, everything they had — everything went down,' he said. 'It is such a great town, it just takes a tail-whipping every once in a while. ... We always survive.' An intense bout of monsoon rains set the disaster in motion Tuesday. Water rushed from the surrounding mountainside, overwhelming the Rio Ruidoso and taking with it a man and two children from an RV park along the river. The bodies were found downstream during search and rescue efforts. The children — a 4-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy — had been camping with their parents when they were swept away. The father and mother were being treated for injuries at a hospital in Texas, according to officials at Fort Bliss, where the father is stationed. Mayor Lynn Crawford said hearts are broken over the lives lost and stomachs are in knots as residents begin to take stock of the damage. Rebuilding — again A popular summer retreat, Ruidoso is no stranger to tragedy. It has spent a year rebuilding following destructive wildfires last summer and the flooding that followed. Rebuilding again in Ruidoso will be hard, if not impossible, said Riverside RV Park owner Barbara Arthur. Arthur says her guests scrambled up a nearby slope when the river started coursing through the site Tuesday afternoon. She also lost her home in flood. It was the sixth time the river rose in the last several weeks and by far the worst, she said. And Tuesday's rainfall was more than could be absorbed by the hillsides and canyons within a wildfire burn scar. Setting records The floodwaters of the Rio Ruidoso rose more than 20 feet (6 meters) on Tuesday to set a new record high-water mark, said National Weather Service meteorologist Todd Shoemake in Albuquerque. That eclipsed the previously recorded high in July 2024 by nearly 5 feet (1.5 meters). About 3.5 inches (8.9 centimeters) of rain fell over the South Fork burn scar in just an hour and a half, Crawford said. As little as a quarter of an inch (about 6 millimeters) of rain over a burn scar can cause flooding. 'They were probably already getting some runoff from upstream before it even actually started raining on top of the wildfire burn scar,' Shoemake said. 'It really was just kind of a terrible coincidence of events that led to that.' He likened the intense rainfall to a 100-year storm, which has a 1% chance of happening in any given year. Cleanup begins Emergency crews completed dozens of swift water rescues before the water receded Tuesday. Two National Guard teams and several local crews already were in the area when the flooding began, said Danielle Silva of the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham requested a presidential disaster declaration, tallying more than $50 million in emergency response expenditures, including water rescues, and damage to public infrastructure, including toppled bridges and washed out roadways. The estimate includes flood damage at Ruidoso and beyond from monsoon rainstorms since late June. Ruidoso has also recently requested $100 million in federal aid to convert flood-prone private land to public property after successive years of violent flooding laid bare the dangers of an expanded floodplain. The floods at Ruidoso came just days after flash floods in Texas killed more than 100 people and left more than 160 people missing. Bracing for more Local officials said the village, as the flood hit, was still in the process of replacing outdoor warning sirens destroyed in last year's wildfire and reassessing risks along the local flood plain. Crawford reiterated Wednesday that Ruidoso will continue to be in the crosshairs with each monsoon, as there's still work to do to recover from the wildfire. The rainy season begins in June and runs through September. The river, meanwhile, is running thick with sediment that can settle and raise future water levels. The village's tourism-based economy also has been thrown into turmoil again. With floodwaters running through Ruidoso Downs, one of the horse track's signature races that was scheduled to start Friday has been derailed. The mayor said people are anxious as the monsoon is sure to bring more rain throughout the summer. 'Yesterday was a good lesson — you know, that Mother Nature is a much bigger, powerful force than we are,' he said Wednesday. 'And that we can do a lot of things to protect ourselves and to try to help direct and whatever, but we cannot control.' ___ Lee reported from Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Bryan from Albuquerque. Associated Press writers Matt Brown in Denver and Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque contributed to this report.
Associated Press
10-07-2025
- Climate
- Associated Press
New Mexico village rebuilds all over again after record-breaking flash flood kills 3
RUIDOSO, N.M. (AP) — The mountain village of Ruidoso returned to the grim rituals of rebuilding after flash flooding and a deadly natural disaster, just one year after wildfire and intense flooding reshaped the popular vacation getaway and its surroundings. Broken tree limbs, twisted metal, crumpled cars and muddy debris remained as crews worked to clear roads and culverts in the wake of Tuesday's flash flood that killed three people — including two children — and significantly damaged as many as 50 homes, with one home carried away entirely. Tracy Haragan, a Ruidoso native on the verge of retirement, watched from his home as a surging river carried away the contents of nine nearby residences. 'You watched everything they owned, everything they had — everything went down,' he said. 'It is such a great town, it just takes a tail-whipping every once in a while. ... We always survive.' An intense bout of monsoon rains set the disaster in motion Tuesday. Water rushed from the surrounding mountainside, overwhelming the Rio Ruidoso and taking with it a man and two children from an RV park along the river. The bodies were found downstream during search and rescue efforts. The children — a 4-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy — had been camping with their parents when they were swept away. The father and mother were being treated for injuries at a hospital in Texas, according to officials at Fort Bliss, where the father is stationed. Mayor Lynn Crawford said hearts are broken over the lives lost and stomachs are in knots as residents begin to take stock of the damage. Rebuilding — again A popular summer retreat, Ruidoso is no stranger to tragedy. It has spent a year rebuilding following destructive wildfires last summer and the flooding that followed. Rebuilding again in Ruidoso will be hard, if not impossible, said Riverside RV Park owner Barbara Arthur. Arthur says her guests scrambled up a nearby slope when the river started coursing through the site Tuesday afternoon. She also lost her home in flood. It was the sixth time the river rose in the last several weeks and by far the worst, she said. And Tuesday's rainfall was more than could be absorbed by the hillsides and canyons within a wildfire burn scar. Setting records The floodwaters of the Rio Ruidoso rose more than 20 feet (6 meters) on Tuesday to set a new record high-water mark, said National Weather Service meteorologist Todd Shoemake in Albuquerque. That eclipsed the previously recorded high in July 2024 by nearly 5 feet (1.5 meters). About 3.5 inches (8.9 centimeters) of rain fell over the South Fork burn scar in just an hour and a half, Crawford said. As little as a quarter of an inch (about 6 millimeters) of rain over a burn scar can cause flooding. 'They were probably already getting some runoff from upstream before it even actually started raining on top of the wildfire burn scar,' Shoemake said. 'It really was just kind of a terrible coincidence of events that led to that.' He likened the intense rainfall to a 100-year storm, which has a 1% chance of happening in any given year. Cleanup begins Emergency crews completed dozens of swift water rescues before the water receded Tuesday. Two National Guard teams and several local crews already were in the area when the flooding began, said Danielle Silva of the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham requested a presidential disaster declaration, tallying more than $50 million in emergency response expenditures, including water rescues, and damage to public infrastructure, including toppled bridges and washed out roadways. The estimate includes flood damage at Ruidoso and beyond from monsoon rainstorms since late June. Ruidoso has also recently requested $100 million in federal aid to convert flood-prone private land to public property after successive years of violent flooding laid bare the dangers of an expanded floodplain. The floods at Ruidoso came just days after flash floods in Texas killed more than 100 people and left more than 160 people missing. Bracing for more Local officials said the village, as the flood hit, was still in the process of replacing outdoor warning sirens destroyed in last year's wildfire and reassessing risks along the local flood plain. Crawford reiterated Wednesday that Ruidoso will continue to be in the crosshairs with each monsoon, as there's still work to do to recover from the wildfire. The rainy season begins in June and runs through September. The river, meanwhile, is running thick with sediment that can settle and raise future water levels. The village's tourism-based economy also has been thrown into turmoil again. With floodwaters running through Ruidoso Downs, one of the horse track's signature races that was scheduled to start Friday has been derailed. The mayor said people are anxious as the monsoon is sure to bring more rain throughout the summer. 'Yesterday was a good lesson — you know, that Mother Nature is a much bigger, powerful force than we are,' he said Wednesday. 'And that we can do a lot of things to protect ourselves and to try to help direct and whatever, but we cannot control.' ___ Lee reported from Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Bryan from Albuquerque. Associated Press writers Matt Brown in Denver and Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque contributed to this report.
CBC
10-07-2025
- Climate
- CBC
New Mexico residents watch in shock as flash flood sweeps entire house downstream
Residents were glued to the windows at a riverside brewery in Ruidoso, New Mexico, as a flash flood swept through town, carrying rocks and debris. Nervous chatter filled the taproom at Downshift Brewing Company, where about 50 people were sheltering from monsoon rains that caused the Rio Ruidoso to swell to more than six metres on Tuesday, a tentative record. The gasps in the room grew louder as an entire house floated by, knocking down trees in its path. The turquoise paint on the front door of the single-storey white house with brown slats was barely visible under layers of mud. But local artist Kaitlyn Carpenter, who was filming the flooding on her phone, recognized it immediately as the family home of one of her best friends. "I've been in that house and have memories in that house, so seeing it come down the river was just pretty heartbreaking," she said. "I just couldn't believe it." A symbol of flood's destruction No one was inside the house that day. Carpenter says her friend stays elsewhere during the summer since the mountain town is prone to flooding. Images and video she took of the house have been widely shared as a stark symbol of the flood's destruction. Three people at a riverside RV park died after being swept away in the river, including two children. Dozens of homes have been damaged, and streets were clogged with mud and debris. Farther down the river, pieces of metal and other debris were twisted around tree trunks. Broken tree limbs were wedged against homes and piled on porches. The water was thick with sediment and many roads remained closed Wednesday. The popular summer destination has been especially vulnerable to flooding since last summer, when the South Fork and Salt fires raced across tinder-dry forest and destroyed hundreds of homes. Residents were forced to flee a wall of flames, only to grapple with intense flooding later that summer.
The Independent
10-07-2025
- Climate
- The Independent
An entire house swept downstream in New Mexico floods seen as a symbol of the devastation
Residents were glued to the windows at a riverside brewery in Ruidoso, New Mexico, as a flash flood swept through town, carrying rocks and debris. Nervous chatter filled the taproom at Downshift Brewing Company, where about 50 people were sheltering from monsoon rains that caused the Rio Ruidoso to swell to more than 20 feet (6.1 kilometers) on Tuesday, a tentative record. The gasps in the room grew louder as an entire house floated by, knocking down trees in its path. The turquoise paint on the front door of the single-story white house with brown slats was barely visible under layers of mud. But local artist Kaitlyn Carpenter, who was filming the flooding on her phone, recognized it immediately as the family home of one of her best friends. 'I've been in that house and have memories in that house, so seeing it come down the river was just pretty heartbreaking,' she said. 'I just couldn't believe it.' No one was inside the house that day. Carpenter said her friend stays elsewhere during the summer since the mountain town is prone to flooding. Her image of the house has been widely shared as a stark symbol of the flood's destruction. Three people who were at a riverside RV park died after being swept away in the river, including two children. Dozens of homes have been damaged, and streets were clogged with mud and debris. Farther down the river, pieces of metal and other debris were twisted around tree trunks. Broken tree limbs were wedged against homes and piled on porches. The water was thick with sediment and many roads still remained closed Wednesday. The popular summer destination has been especially vulnerable to flooding since the summer of 2024, when the South Fork and Salt fires raced across tinder-dry forest and destroyed hundreds of homes. Residents were forced to flee a wall of flames, only to grapple with intense flooding later that summer.
