Flooding Resources

Floodwaters in San Juan County are receding and rescues are complete but evacuated neighborhoods remain closed while crews check homes for hazards. Updated Oct. 27.

• What happened. Storms beginning Oct. 22 pushed the San Juan, Animas and Rio Chama rivers to historic levels. The San Juan River crested at about 14.5 feet in Farmington (major flood stage is 12 feet) and above 23 feet at Shiprock (major flood stage is 20.5 feet).
• Rescues. Law enforcement reported hundreds of water rescues between Farmington and Bloomfield. No rescues have been needed since Sunday, October 25.
• Evacuations. Evacuated neighborhoods in San Juan County remain closed, including to residents, because of structural damage, contaminated water, downed power lines and possible gas leaks.
• Socorro and Valencia counties. Floodwaters from the Rio Puerco stranded residents near Bernardo on Sunday night. Crews evacuated nine people by boat, and a deceased woman was found in the floodwaters Monday afternoon. The Rio Puerco is not expected to crest until Wednesday, and the area remains under an evacuation notice.
• Tribal nations. Acoma Pueblo, Laguna Pueblo, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, San Ildefonso Pueblo and Zia Pueblo are all covered by the federal emergency declaration.
• More rain ahead. Soil across nearly all of New Mexico is saturated. Storms are forecast Thursday through Sunday, with a risk of localized flash flooding across much of the state.

Recovery costs from this flood are estimated at $200 million to $300 million. Damage will be fully assessed once the water recedes.

Disaster Recovery Center

A Disaster Recovery Center is open at San Juan College's Quality Center for Business, 5101 College Blvd., Farmington, Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

State and local agencies are there in person to help with:

• Applying for disaster assistance, with state disaster recovery staff
• Red Cross case management
• Medicaid and SNAP benefits
• Veterans services
• Seniors’ services
• Replacing vital records and other lost documents, like drivers licenses and birth certificates
• Rebuilding questions, building permits and floodplain and insurance information, from San Juan County Community Development
• Septic system questions
• 2-1-1 information and referrals

Shelters

• McGee Park, Road 5568 between Farmington and Bloomfield. Red Cross shelter with room for people, pets and RVs.
• Four Corners Stockyard, for livestock.
• Finley Complex, Socorro, for residents displaced by Rio Puerco flooding.

Free showers

The Farmington Recreation Center, 1101 Fairgrounds Road, offers free showers from 2 to 7 p.m. through Thursday, Oct. 29; 2 to 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30; and 8 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 31.

Other needs

Cleanup help

• Farmington Floodplain and Storm Water Management, (505) 599-1312. For residents within Farmington city limits who need help with flood cleanup.

Food

• First Baptist Church in Shiprock and First Baptist Church in Bloomfield are providing food assistance and community support.

Pets and livestock

• Cow House (Kirtland and Farmington area), 505-801-8393, for large animals and livestock.
• Temporary small pet shelter, 109 E. Piñon St., Farmington (the former Desert River Guides building).
• Farmington Regional Animal Shelter, 133 N. Browning Pkwy., Farmington, 505-599-1098.

Free legal help

New Mexico Legal Aid’s Disaster Legal Services offers free legal advice and representation to income-qualified households. It can help with:

• FEMA and SBA applications and appeals
• Replacing documents
• Insurance claim disputes
• Repair and contractor scams
• Landlord-tenant problems
• Price gouging
• Utility shutoffs
• Foreclosure prevention

How to reach them:

• Disaster Legal Services hotline: 1-855-204-2569, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (voicemail 24/7)
• Email: DisasterLegalServices@nmlegalaid.org
• Statewide intake: 1-833-LGL-HELP (1-833-545-4357)
• Apply online: NewMexicoLegalAid.org

Organizations helping with the response

• New Mexico Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NM VOAD): coordinating volunteer groups. 505-319-4630, nmvoad@nvoad.org
• American Red Cross: shelters
• ECHO Food Bank: food
• Roadrunner Food Bank: food and logistics
• Southern Baptist Disaster Relief: meals and laundry
• The Salvation Army: donations
• 2-1-1 and United Way in Farmington: donations
• 211 of Northern and Central New Mexico: lodging vouchers for affected residents
• Team Rubicon: cleanup, muck-and-gut and volunteers, through Crisis Cleanup
• Convoy of Hope: emergency supplies
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: emergency supplies, water and volunteers
• Medical Reserve Corps: medical and mental health support

Stay safe

• Never walk, swim or drive through floodwaters. Turn around, don't drown.
• Stay off river trails and the Farmington riverwalk. Floodwater washed out the ground under some walkways, and the pavement could collapse.
• Avoid contact with floodwater. Untreated wastewater entered the San Juan River when floodwaters reached Bloomfield's water reclamation plant.

Do not return to an evacuated home until safety inspections are complete and the evacuation order is lifted. When you can go back:

1. 1. Document the damage first. Take photos and video of every room and damaged item before you clean or throw anything out.
2. 2. Call your insurance company to start a claim.
3. 3. Leave the power off. Do not turn on breakers or start generators until utility crews have cleared your area. Treat every downed line and piece of electrical equipment as live, and report it.
4. 4. Sort debris into four piles: yard waste and construction debris, household hazardous waste, electronics, and appliances.
5. 5. Get rid of it. The San Juan County Landfill is accepting flood debris. County transfer stations accept household trash and food waste only. A free curbside debris pickup program is planned for later this week; details will be posted here.

Floodwater and mud may contain sewage. Wear gloves and boots, and wash your hands often.

Water, power and roads

• Drinking water is safe from the tap in Farmington, Aztec and Bloomfield. Farmington has shut its river intakes and is drawing water from Lake Farmington. Bloomfield's water plant and pump stations are running normally.
• Power. Report downed lines immediately. Farmington customers can call the FEUS flood line at (505) 599-1238.
• Closed roads in San Juan County (as of Oct. 26): county bridges on Road 5500 and Road 6675, plus closures on Road 7900 and Road 7730. Affected roads inside Farmington have reopened, but river trails remain closed.
• Closed roads elsewhere: U.S. 60 just east of Interstate 25 in Socorro County.
• Check nmroads.com before you travel, and limit nonessential trips into flooded areas so crews can work.

The state has made up to $12 million in emergency funds available for flood response since September, and the Governor secured a federal emergency declaration on Oct. 26. She is now preparing a request for a Major Disaster Declaration to bring in full federal recovery help.

Sept. 30: Lt. Gov. Howie Morales, as acting governor, declared a statewide flooding emergency, making up to $3.75 million available to counties for lodging, shelter, food, health care and transportation.

Oct. 22: Governor activated the State Emergency Plan, the National Guard, State Police and mutual aid teams. About 58 Guard members, including swift water rescue teams, deployed to San Juan County on Oct. 23 and 24.

Oct. 23: The State Emergency Operations Center activated to coordinate state, federal, local and Tribal response.

Oct. 23: Governor requested a Major Disaster Declaration for the Sept. 20–Oct. 2 flooding in southern New Mexico, seeking help with $27.1 million in public infrastructure damage across 14 counties and three Tribal nations. That request is still pending.

Oct. 24: Governor requested a federal emergency declaration for northern New Mexico.

Oct. 26: Governor visited San Juan County and joined local officials at a news conference.

Oct. 26: The President approved the state’s request for a federal emergency declaration. It covers San Juan, Rio Arriba, Cibola and Sandoval counties and Acoma Pueblo, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, San Ildefonso Pueblo, Zia Pueblo and Laguna Pueblo.

Oct. 26: Governor signed executive orders releasing $8.25 million more in state emergency funds: $750,000 for the National Guard’s response in San Juan County and $7.5 million for the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

On Oct. 26, the President approved New Mexico’s request for a federal emergency declaration. It covers San Juan, Rio Arriba, Cibola and Sandoval counties and five Tribal nations. But it falls short of what the state asked for.

FEMA usually helps after a disaster in two ways: it sends federal agencies to do work directly, or it reimburses state, local and Tribal governments for work they’ve already done. The declaration approved only the first.

• Debris removal (FEMA Category A): not approved. Counties and Tribal nations get no federal help with the cost of clearing mud, wreckage and flood debris. San Juan County estimates debris removal there alone could cost $30 million to $40 million or more.
• Emergency response (FEMA Category B): approved only as direct federal help. Federal agencies like the Army Corps of Engineers, the EPA and FEMA can now do emergency work on the ground. But the state, counties and Tribal nations will not be reimbursed for what they’ve already spent on rescues, National Guard deployments, sheltering, sandbags and emergency crews.
• New Mexico still pays 25%. Even for the work federal agencies do, the state and local governments must cover a quarter of the cost.

Once damage is fully assessed, the Governor will request another Major Disaster Declaration for this flooding. The state plans to include Santa Fe and Socorro counties, and more counties are likely to be added.

• Donate goods at San Juan United Way, 903 W. Apache St., Farmington. A larger donation collection site is being set up at McGee Park. For more information on accepted donations, reach out to San Juan United Way at (505) 326-1195.
• Volunteer by calling 2-1-1, which is coordinating volunteers and donations.
• Give crews room to work. If you don't live in a flooded area, stay away so emergency vehicles can get through, and call 911 only for emergencies.

Find more flood safety information from the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.