Santa Fe Mayor Michael Garcia has declared a natural disaster emergency in the city following a tornado that struck Saturday night. The declaration comes as flooding across the Southwest continues and forecasters warn of more rain later this week.
The National Weather Service rated the twister an EF-1, a category capable of producing winds of up to 110 mph. Officials estimate it touched down between 7 p.m. and 7:08 p.m. According to the Santa Fe New Mexican, it began near Via Caballero and moved about a mile and a half north before ending near Siringo Road. Surveyors put its width at roughly 100 yards, and 10 homes in the midtown area were damaged. No injuries were reported from the tornado itself.
One storm-related death did occur elsewhere in the area. Authorities said Isabelle Beulaygue, 39, was a passenger in a vehicle that was swept away by a flooded arroyo north of Santa Fe, near Paseo de la Tierra and Vuelta Chamisa.
The tornado came during a broader stretch of severe weather. After more than four days of flooding in New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said damage in the state alone could total $300 million. She said debris removal, road and bridge repairs and other long-term recovery work would drive the cost.
President Donald Trump announced Monday that federal disaster assistance would be available to New Mexico, with 25% to be matched by agencies in the state. Lujan Grisham voiced concern about that requirement but said she would "frontload" state resources for recovery. "I don't care if it's a billion dollars," she said. "The goal here is to identify every state, every federal, every local resource and get it where it belongs."
At least two deaths have been reported in New Mexico. In Socorro County, about 50 miles south of Santa Fe, 64-year-old Grace Clark was swept away as rising water trapped residents in their homes. Valencia County Fire Chief Matthew Propp said nine other people were rescued as teams worked overnight. San Juan County spokesperson Devin Neeley said between 200 and 300 people there have been rescued in recent days. Hundreds of homes along the San Juan and Animas rivers, including in Farmington and Pagosa Springs, Colorado, remained evacuated or cut off by flooded roads.
Farther upstream and downstream, the effects continued. In Bluff, Utah, a town of 250, flooding has reached 17 homes and five businesses since Friday, though the San Juan River crested lower than expected Monday. Mayor Josh Ewing said he is worried about rain forecast for Friday night and Sunday. "It's the second flood that really gets you," he said, "because everything is completely saturated."
Officials across the region urged people to stay out of floodwaters after wastewater treatment plants were inundated. The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority reported that its wastewater lagoons in Montezuma Creek were "completely breached," which could contaminate the San Juan River. Anyone exposed was advised to shower or bathe as soon as possible.
