Ruidoso digging out from historic flash flood

RUIDOSO — Jesus Segura had just begun his shift in the kitchen of the Kokopelli Country Club on Tuesday when a crowd entered the restaurant to take shelter from the rain and lightning.

As people packed in, Segura recalls looking through the window at the storm clouds on the horizon and getting a bad feeling. He couldn’t reach his mother on the phone right away, so he left work and headed to the family home on Gavilan Canyon Road near the Rio Ruidoso.

Growing up in the village, Segura had witnessed wildfires and floods. On Tuesday, standing in the mud outside the trailer home, he said this was the worst yet. The river tore through the neighborhood, sweeping through storm barriers, flinging pickup trucks, tree trunks and other debris, and breaking mobile homes and houses apart.

Fronting the street, the Seguras’ home remained standing in its place, but the home was without power, and gas and wastewater lines had been dislodged. “It’s unlivable,” he said. “We know we’re going to have to do something else.”

Some of the houses and vehicles behind them were wrecked, as neighbors and volunteers cleared mud with earthmoving equipment, helped clear belongings out or simply handed out food and water.

“We’re lucky that our house didn’t come down,” Segura said. “I don’t know why. We are like a shield to everybody who’s right behind us. … At least we can come here and sit down for a little bit, help the rest of the people — that’s what we’ve been doing all day.”

During a briefing on radio station KRUI, Ruidoso Mayor Lynn Crawford said a village council meeting was in progress as the rains arrived and that flood activity escalated rapidly: “It got ugly really quick.”

Monsoon rains Tuesday brought flash floods cascading through the burn scar left by last year’s devastating South Fork wildfire. The National Weather Service in Albuquerque said the river may have crested at 20.24 feet.

Three people — an adult male between 40 and 50 years of age, a 4-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy — were swept away in the “unprecedented” floodwaters and later recovered. The children’s parents survived. None had been officially identified as of Wednesday night.

Search and rescue efforts continued Wednesday, with communities across New Mexico contributing local firefighters, search and rescue and swiftwater teams. The local community center offered shelter to the displaced and some local businesses contributed workers, supplies or meals to the affected.

“Our hearts are broken for the families who have lost their loved ones in this terrible tragedy,” Crawford said in a written statement. “The entire Village of Ruidoso extends our deepest sympathy and compassion to these grieving families during this unimaginably difficult time. We are united in our sorrow and our commitment to supporting one another as we face this devastating loss together.”

Wrenching footage from Tuesday’s storm circulated online, showing a roaring river overtaking its banks and floodgates, ripping through communities and washing away a home. Floodwaters could be seen overtaking the grounds and horse stables at Ruidoso Downs in the midst of a racing season that Crawford said would now be canceled.

On Wednesday, the cleanup began, as families tended to the remains of homes and the village posted information on resources and instructions for donations and volunteerism on its official Facebook page. Crews worked to address gas leaks, restore power and telecommunications amid intermittent road closures.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an emergency declaration Tuesday night, requesting federal resources to aid the community. “Ruidoso endured devastating wildfires and flooding last summer, and now catastrophic flooding is hitting this resilient community again,” she said.

On Thursday morning, she was scheduled to visit the village and deliver updates at a news conference.

New Mexico’s all-Democratic federal delegation made their own appeal to the Trump administration, urging swift assistance in a letter where they wrote: “The scale of this disaster demands an immediate and robust response. Lives, homes, and critical infrastructure have been upended by this devastation, and New Mexico should not have to face it alone.”

As the summer monsoon season continues, more rain is expected to arrive in Ruidoso on Saturday and continue through the following week.