A knock on the door around 7 a.m. Wednesday gave Fernando Guillen just enough time to get his five boys out before floodwater spread across his family's property on Vineyard Loop in Las Cruces. A neighbor had come to warn them that water was moving into the area, and the family fled to relatives' house while nearby lots filled completely with water.
A Warning That Arrived Just in Time
According to KDBC, the neighbor's knock came as floodwater was already higher earlier in the day and closer to the house than it would later be. Guillen has five boys, including three who are age three or under, and the family headed straight to the grandparents' house once they realized how fast conditions were changing. Firefighters didn't arrive until after Guillen had already dropped his children off with family, and when they did show up, they advised residents to leave if conditions worsened rather than ordering anyone out.
Guillen's family said they did not receive any alert before the water moved in, even though warnings had gone out the previous night for communities farther north. Guillen told the outlet he had heard about flooding in Hatch and Salem, but nothing suggested his own street was next. Rocks scattered across the property reportedly helped residents figure out where it was still safe to walk out.
Rio Grande Running High, Cause Still Unclear
Guillen said the water at his property appeared to come from the Rio Grande, which was running high after a stretch of heavy rain that swept through southern New Mexico. The river did overflow its banks in some spots that week, and county officials separately confirmed the Rio Grande had overtopped its banks in low-lying areas along the river corridor, per KFOX14. But officials have not confirmed the exact cause of the flooding that hit Guillen's neighborhood specifically.
A neighbor also found an irrigation gate open behind the neighborhood and closed it, after which the water stopped flowing. Guillen said he does not know whether the open gate and the flooding were connected, and Doña Ana County has not responded to questions about whether the gate played a role. Doña Ana County had not issued an evacuation notice for the area; county crews responded to a call about the street, found water on the roadway, and determined it was still passable. Fire rescue crews did not evacuate anyone from the area.
Wider Flooding Across Doña Ana County
The flooding on Vineyard Loop was part of a much larger emergency across the county that week. Heavy rains and thunderstorms caused flooding, debris and road closures across southern New Mexico on Sept. 29, according to the Albuquerque Journal. The National Weather Service's El Paso station and the county warned that flood conditions would likely accelerate because soils were already saturated from two weeks of monsoon storms.
Officials also issued a Flash Flood Emergency for northwestern Doña Ana County after reporting the imminent failure of McLeod Dam on the McLeod Arroyo, the same outlet reported. The county later said the dam had suffered only a small piping failure that had been mitigated, with no water exiting the dam at that point. Flooding, debris, damaged roads and other hazards remained in the Rincon area even after an evacuation notice there was lifted.
At least one person was rescued from floodwater in Doña Ana County that Wednesday morning, according to KOAT, with public safety crews and the New Mexico National Guard pulling a person trapped on Highway 185 to safety before the person was evaluated and released. The city of Las Cruces closed La Llorona Park around noon that day after the Rio Grande overflowed onto the park grounds, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported. The City of Las Cruces had urged residents to avoid rising water and flooded areas altogether, telling people to “turn around—don't risk your safety.”
Cleanup Expected to Take Days
Back on Vineyard Loop, Guillen's home appeared to avoid major damage, though his property remained covered in water Wednesday afternoon, with the water expected to take a couple of days to clear. Guillen expressed gratitude to the neighbor who woke his family in time to get out.
The flooding fits a pattern seen elsewhere in the county that week. In Garfield, farmer Randy Garay told the Albuquerque Journal that two feet of water entered his house the same Wednesday morning, and the paper noted the swelling Rio Grande followed rain tied to the remnants of Hurricane Polo and a separate West Coast low-pressure system. Climate change and heavy precipitation were also part of broader discussions about the storms.
