NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Mescalero, NM
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Mescalero, New Mexico since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 12 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 12
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Mescalero
The strongest of the 12 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on May 27, 1982; its path came within 22 miles. Of the 12, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 6 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 6. The most recent tornado was on July 9, 2024. Mescalero has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 62% of the 94 New Mexico cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 5 times since 1965, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 94 New Mexico cities, 77% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Mescalero.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Mescalero
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s3
- 2000s2
- 1990s1
- 1980s2
- 1970s1
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 1982 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 2019 | EF1 | 19 mi | 0.31 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 4, 1991 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 22, 1989 | F1 | 24 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 17, 1972 | F1 | 19 mi | 6.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1959 | F1 | 22 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1959 | F1 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 26, 2015 | EF0 | 14 mi | 0.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 14, 2010 | EF0 | 18 mi | 0.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 2007 | EF0 | 16 mi | 0.19 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 2003 | F0 | 13 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 9, 2024 | Unrated | 14 mi | 0.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 12, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Mescalero
The Storm Prediction Center has 5 hail reports within 10 miles of Mescalero since 1965. Of these, 3 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently September 15, 2016. The most recent report is from July 15, 2023.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Mescalero
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cloudcroft, NM, 14 miles south of Mescalero at 8,679 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 72°F and low of 48°F; January is the coolest, at 42°F and 19°F. July is the wettest at 5.5 inches of precipitation on average and April the driest at 0.9 inches; the year adds up to 28.5 inches over 62 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs of 90°F are rare: fewer than one day a year on average. Lows fall below freezing on about 172 nights a year. Snowfall averages 66.8 inches a year, most of it in December. That 28.5 inches is more than at 57 of the 58 New Mexico stations used on this site (98%). Ruidoso, 14 miles north, has its own station (Ruidoso, NM): 22.0 inches a year, 6.5 less than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 72°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42 | 19 | 1.6 | 4 | 13.1 |
| Feb | 45 | 22 | 1.7 | 4 | 13.3 |
| Mar | 51 | 26 | 1.5 | 3 | 9.8 |
| Apr | 58 | 31 | 0.9 | 2 | 3.7 |
| May | 66 | 38 | 1.2 | 3 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 74 | 45 | 2.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 72 | 48 | 5.5 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 71 | 47 | 5.0 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 67 | 42 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 60 | 34 | 2.1 | 4 | 3.2 |
| Nov | 51 | 26 | 1.4 | 3 | 7.3 |
| Dec | 43 | 19 | 2.2 | 4 | 16.3 |
| Year | 58 | 33 | 28.5 | 62 | 66.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cloudcroft, NM (8,679 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Mescalero
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 13 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Mescalero: 13 flash floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $315,000 in property and crop damage. July has had the most flash floods, 10 of 13. Of the 92 New Mexico cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 52 have had fewer than Mescalero.
July 17, 2008: flash flood 4 miles from the centre of Mescalero — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Rainfall amounts of up to 2 inches fell on the South Tularosa Fire burn scar above Mescalero, resulting in excessive runoff. Logs washed on to Route 10, and much debris blocked residences.”
July 27, 2008: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Mescalero — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “Moisture associated with the remnants of Dolly resulted in very heavy rain over the South Tularosa Canyon Fire burn scar. Flood waters over-topped containment ponds leading to a widespread flash flood event.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Otero County, which includes Mescalero, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1984, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 fires, 5 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides, on July 22, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Otero County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail and inland flooding; Relatively Low for strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $43.3 million a year, the 9th highest of 33 New Mexico counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $26.8 million (62%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Mescalero
- Ruidoso, NM14 mi
- Cloudcroft, NM15 mi
- Ruidoso Downs, NM16 mi
- Tularosa, NM17 mi
- Alto, NM19 mi
- Alamogordo, NM26 mi
- Holloman Afb, NM30 mi
- Capitan, NM43 mi
- Roswell, NM71 mi
- Hagerman, NM81 mi
- Dexter, NM81 mi
- Las Cruces, NM82 mi
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