Major Flooding Possible in the Desert Southwest This Week

The desert southwest has had it's fair share of rainy days these last few weeks. However, things are expected to ramp up considerably throughout this week, as an upper-level setup is forecast to ramp up tropical moisture into the region.

With this in mind, the National Weather Service has issued flood watches for almost the entire state of New Mexico. These advisories stick around through Wednesday, but we wouldn't be surprise if they're extended.

As for timing, the coverage will likely be quite widespread through Tuesday and Wednesday. Into late week, however, the coverage remains on the higher side, and we can continue to see an active desert southwest as late as Friday!

This is rich, tropical moisture inundating these areas. We're expecting heavy totals and high rainfall rates. Because of this, the Weather Prediction Center (WPC), has issued a MODERATE (level 3 out of 4) risk for flash flooding in areas of New Mexico and Texas for today and tomorrow. This means that catastrophic flash flooding is POSSIBLE in the dark green shaded area.

As for totals, some spots can see up to 7" of rain by the time Saturday rolls around. That's a lot to pick up anywhere in the country, but especially dangerous in the desert southwest.

Going forward, it's very important to know the difference between a flash flood warning and a flash flood emergency. Doing so will get you better prepared for flood events.

Make sure to keep alerts on through this week, and have multiple ways to get them. Also, stay tuned to WeatherNation for the latest. We'll have your full western U.S. breakdown and :50 past the hour.