As residents and businesspeople in Ruidoso assess the damage caused by heavy and dangerous flooding, others can find ways to help. Here is what to know.

Sandbags protect a building in Ruidoso, New Mexico after floods swept through town in July of 2024. This week's floods rose significantly higher. Photo: The Washington Post

The summer rainy season in New Mexico usually brings daily alerts about the potential for flooding around the arid state.

Senator Heinrich said the increase in severity of climate events, like the ones happening here in Ruidoso with the fires and floods, has to come with a change in how resources and recovery efforts are allocated.

Storm reports from the National Weather Service office in Albuquerque indicate floodwaters have reached homes and several roads throughout Ruidoso are covered with water.

Where is Ruidoso? The village of Ruidoso is located in the southern part of New Mexico and is a noted vacation spot boasting camping and recreation amid its expansive forest landscape.

The children, ages four and seven, were swept downstream by a flash flood after the Rio Ruidoso river rose to a record-setting 20 feet.

RUIDOSO – Days after the most destructive flood in Ruidoso’s history, New Mexico’s U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Lujan were given a tour of the worst-affected areas, from the Upper Canyon to Ruidoso Downs Racetrack.