Rain making a dent in NM drought

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - August has been a great month for moisture in Albuquerque and it has already exceeded totals for this time last year. But has the recent rain made difference in the drought?

Officials say the rain has helped when it comes to fire danger, but it will take a lot more to make a dent in the drought.

Sheets of rain came down last week and caused flash flooding, like the one that wiped out Rail Runner service for two days on the Santo Domingo Pueblo.

Other parts of the state also saw hail and on Saturday arroyos were flooded with runoff and the metro area was pounded with moisture.

So far New Mexico has seen more than an inch and a half of rain this month in Albuquerque.

That is about average for August and the month is not over yet.

At this time last year, New Mexico saw less than an inch of rain.

The National Weather Service says the drought has been bumped down from extreme to severe in Albuquerque and is on par to recover a bit from the dryness as winter approaches.

“We are not in a La Nina which we were in for the two previous winter seasons so we are definitely moving into what we think is going to be a sustained if not week El Niño event,” Kerry Jones with the National Weather Service said.

Officials say it will take at least two more years of fruitful rain for the state to really recover from the drought.

The southern part of the state is still under extreme drought conditions.