By Rishav Kothari
Thursday, September 17, 2026 13:10 UTC
Another round of #HeavyShowers and #thunderstorms was #forecast across parts of New Mexico, Utah and Colorado on September 17, 2026, prompting Flood Watches for areas vulnerable to rapid runoff and flash flooding. A moisture-rich disturbance was then expected to move northeast into South Dakota, where the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center (WPC) forecast 51–102 mm (2–4 inches) of rain with locally higher totals.
Flood Watches covered parts of New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado on September 17, as additional storms threatened saturated ground, burn scars, dry washes, and slot canyons.
WPC placed a high-end Slight Risk of excessive rainfall across much of South Dakota, where 51–102 mm (2–4 inches), with locally higher totals, was forecast as a tropical-origin disturbance moved out of the Southwest.
The #NWS office in Albuquerque issued watches beginning at 11:00 MDT (17:00 UTC) on September 17 for parts of northwestern, north-central, central and west-central New Mexico and the South Central Mountains. The affected areas included #Farmington, #Shiprock, the #Albuquerque and #SantaFe metropolitan areas, the Sangre de Cristo, Jemez and Tusas mountains, the West Central Highlands and burn scars near #Ruidoso.
The office said storms could produce rainfall rates of 25–51 mm/h (1–2 inches/h) during the afternoon and evening, followed by lighter to moderate rain overnight. Recent burn scars, urban areas, communities with limited drainage infrastructure, complex terrain, and already saturated ground were particularly vulnerable to rapid runoff.
Additional watches issued by NWS #ElPaso/Santa Teresa covered Sierra, Doña Ana, Luna and eastern Grant counties and the Sacramento Mountains of northern Otero County from 12:00 MDT (18:00 UTC) on September 17 through 06:00 MDT (12:00 UTC) on September 18.
The office said many areas west of the Rio Grande had received 13–51 mm (0.5–2 inches) of rain over recent days. Localized totals of another 25–51 mm (1–2 inches) were possible where strong storms developed or repeatedly crossed the same area.
In #Utah, watches covered the Wasatch Plateau and Book Cliffs, Central Mountains, Castle Country and San Rafael Swell, as well as southeastern Utah, the La Sal and Abajo Mountains, and the Canyonlands and Natural Bridges areas. NWS Salt Lake City forecast rainfall rates of 6–25 mm/h (0.25–1 inch/h), with locally higher rates under the strongest storms. Dry washes, slot canyons, slickrock terrain, and burn scars were among the most exposed locations.
NWS Grand Junction maintained watches across the Animas and San Juan river basins, the Four Corners and Upper Dolores River area, and the #SanJuan Mountains in southwestern Colorado. Recent rain had saturated the ground, while further storms threatened the Gold Mountain, Elk, and Ferris burn scars and other steep terrain. NWS Pueblo also maintained a watch for the Eastern San Juan Mountains and Upper Rio Grande Valley through the evening.
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