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Dust roams across New Mexico causing low visibility, crashes and closures
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Many parts of New Mexico were covered in clouds of dust Monday, resulting in poor visibility, road closures and health alerts to be issued.
In Roswell, 77 mph wind gusts, according to the National Weather Service of Albuquerque, caused people to experience brownout conditions resulting in several accidents.
“If it isn’t necessary, please stay indoors and off the roadway,” Chaves County Sheriff Charles Yslas said on a Facebook post.
Other parts of southern New Mexico reported zero visibility due to dust and sand blowing from White Sands National Park, said Matthew DeMaria, National Weather Service meteorologist of Albuquerque.
Many roads were shutdown due to poor and dangerous conditions including Interstate 10 from Deming to Las Cruces and N.M. 11 between Columbus and Deming, which remained closed as of 5:41 p.m. Monday, New Mexico Department of Transportation District 1 spokesperson Ami Evans said.
A few wrecks were reported as well, including a multiple-vehicle crash off U.S. 285 in Chaves County that resulted in people being taken to a local hospital, and a crash in Guadalupe County off U.S. 84 involving an overturned tractor-trailer, New Mexico State Police spokesperson Amanda Richards said in an email.
“I cannot definitively say whether these crashes are attributed to dust or wind,” Richards said.
DeMaria said motorists should not travel down U.S. 285 “on days like this.”
“It’s just too dangerous,” he said.
Many places across the state dealt with wind gusts of at least 60 mph, including Albuquerque where the dust prompted the city to issue a health alert and a notification for contractors and businesses who generate dust to shutdown. Visibility in the metro area ranged from a few miles to a mile at Double Eagle II Airport, DeMaria said.
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Winds are expected to continue Tuesday with gusts up to 45 mph in Albuquerque, 60 mph in Clines Corners and 61 mph in Clovis, where a high wind warning will be in effect, according to the National Weather Service.
