New Mexico

Massive ‘haboob’ dust storm leaves drivers stranded across Texas and New Mexico

Published

10 months ago

March 4, 2025

Massive ‘haboob’ dust storm leaves drivers stranded across Texas and New Mexico

A massive dust storm buried parts of New Mexico and Texas in airborne smut Monday morning, shutting down highways and leaving nearly 900,000 residents trapped in a potentially deadly cloud.

The dust storm — a particularly fierce variety known as a “haboob” — was miles wide and thousands of feet tall, carried along the southern border by whipping winds that kicked up desert dust and created near zero-visibility conditions, according to the National Weather Service.

That agency issued blowing dust advisories for counties in southern New Mexico and Texas until at least Monday night and warned of wind gusts up to 80 miles per hour in some areas.

Officials closed parts of I-10, I-25, and other highways, and the visibility around El Paso International Airport dropped to just 1/4 mile, reported CBS 4 meteorologist Evan O’Reagan, who posted videos to X of opaque walls of dust taken by unlucky motorists.

Federal officials also issued red flag fire warnings for counties in the haboob’s path as strong winds and low humidity made the desert into a tinderbox for wildfires.

The dust — which could linger in the air for days — prompted officials in Albuquerque to issue an emergency health alert, urging anyone with respiratory issues to stay indoors, KQRE reported.

Haboobs can occur anywhere in the U.S. but are most common in the Southwest. They are particularly dangerous for people with respiratory conditions and highway drivers, who often have no way to escape the storm by the time they spot it looming on the horizon.

“Blinding, choking dust can quickly reduce visibility, causing accidents that may involve chain collisions, creating massive pileups,” the National Weather Service warns.

Rather than try to out-drive a haboob, experts advise drivers to pull off the road, shut off their car lights, and wait for the storm to pass.

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New Mexico

New Mexico Public Education Department faces $35 million shortfall

Published

4 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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New Mexico Public Education Department faces million shortfall

The New Mexico Public Education Department is facing a $35 million deficit, which it attributes to overpayments made to Gallup-McKinley County Schools, a claim the district disputes, arguing they are being wrongly blamed for the state’s funding mismanagement.

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New Mexico

New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

Published

16 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

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New Mexico

What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

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What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

The governor sets the agenda for the session, including for the budget, so here is what they are looking at so far.

SANTA FE, N.M. — As the regular session of the New Mexico Legislature is set to begin Jan. 20, lawmakers have already filed dozens of bills.

Bills include prohibiting book bans at public libraries and protections against AI, specifically the distribution of sensitive and “Deepfake” images

Juvenile justice reform is, again, a hot topic. House Bill 25 would allow access to someone’s juvenile records during a background check if they’re trying to buy a gun.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham sets the agenda and puts forth the proposed budget lawmakers will address during the session. The governor is calling for lawmakers to take up an $11.3 billion budget for the 2027 fiscal year, which is up 4.6% from current spending levels.

Where would that money go? More than $600 million would go to universal free child care. Meanwhile, more than $200 million would go to health care and to protect against federal funding cuts.

There is also $65 million for statewide affordable housing initiatives and $19 million for public safety.

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