More Rain - 9/2/06

The rain continues to fall, which is welcomed, but when rain falls in the desert, it's often intense, creating flooding and erosion.

Here's a shot of the rain coming down at this moment.

More Rain - 8/31/06

Parts of Las Cruces received at least 1.9 inches during the night.


Here you can see a rain storm rolling across the Organ Mountains.

One consequence of rain is dazzling sunsets:



Tags: Rain Las Cruces

Doña Ana County Declared Disaster Area

The Federal Government has just declared Doña Ana County a disaster area.

The most recent flooding hit Radium Springs hard, which is just north of Las Cruces.


Radium Springs is the site of Fort Selden, which was an active fort from 1866-1877 and from 1881-1891.




Today Fort Selden is a State Monument.

Tags: Doña Ana County, Fort Selden, Radium Springs

Rain, Rain, Rain ...

The big news in Las Cruces, and all of southern New Mexico, is rain - and flooding! The yearly average for Las Cruces is about 6.5 inches. So far this year, the Weather Service has reported 9.7 inches.

But many local areas have had much more rain than that, some by 3 or 4 inches. It is quite common for rain to fall heavily in very localized areas. Here's an example, taken today at sunset, looking over Las Cruces to the West.


The flooding has been severe in Hatch, New Mexico, and in some of the areas surrounding Las Cruces.




Hatch is famous for its green chiles -- in fact, few in New Mexico doubt that Hatch produces the finest chiles in the world.

Have the chiles been harmed?

So far, not too much. But prices are already higher.

Tags: Rain, Hatch Green Chiles, Flooding, Yearly Rainfall