New Mexico

Texas, Kansas, New Mexico under tornado threat, large hail and heavy rain expected. What to know

Published

11 months ago

April 23, 2025

Texas, Kansas, New Mexico under tornado threat, large hail and heavy rain expected. What to know

Deadly storms have left a trail of destruction across the central US, but the danger is far from over. Severe weather is still brewing, with forecasters warning that more hazardous storms are heading towards the south. These storms are likely to bring large hail, heavy rain, and lead to potential tornadoes

Texas, Kansas, New Mexico under tornado threat, large hail and heavy rain expected (Unsplash – representational image)

A severe thunderstorm system is expected to activate on April 22 across northeastern Kansas and Texas while penetrating New Mexico. AccuWeather warnings reported that more dangerous storms containing baseball-sized hail, torrential rainfalls, and individual tornadoes are also predicted. The areas that are most affected are likely to experience destruction of houses, combined with automobiles and agricultural fields.

This weather system could in fact pass across the southern US over a long period of time, spanning through the entire week, with the development of more intense weather conditions. The Mississippi and Ohio valleys are expected to experience heavy rainfall by April 25. Areas that have not dried up after recent heavy rainfalls could face flash flooding too.

Flash flood threat in other areas

Heavy showers during the first week of April brought up to 16 inches of rain in four days to parts of the mid-Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio valleys, Accuweather reported. Some of the small streams and secondary rivers have since receded, but the main surge of water is still moving downstream on the lower Mississippi River. Moderate to major flooding continues in this area.

The Mississippi River has recently crested, or is expected to soon crest, along the shores of Tennessee, Arkansas and northern Mississippi. However, a crest around Baton Rouge is not predicted to happen until the end of the month.

Areas west of the Mississippi River experienced heavy rain over the Easter holiday weekend. This pushed some rivers in the southern and central Plains above flood stage. The secondary surge, expected to cycle down the Mississippi in the following weeks, will possibly bring lower water levels than the first surge.

Several downpours into Friday are expected to be poorly organised because of the storm systems’ weak nature, which has been drifting west to east from the Plains to the Atlantic coast or the Great Lakes. Meanwhile, moisture from the Gulf can cause even non-severe thunderstorms to drop torrential downpours over localised areas from the central and southern Plains to parts of the Ohio Valley and Atlantic Seaboard. This could trigger urban and small stream flooding in certain cases.

Over three to four days, the cumulative rainfall is expected to peak under 6 inches in the wettest spots. There will also be breaks in the rain. Therefore, most of the rivers in the region should be able to tackle the runoff with not much impact.

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New Mexico

New Mexico Environment Department to hold hearings on Project Jupiter air quality

Published

12 hours ago

March 26, 2026

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New Mexico Environment Department to hold hearings on Project Jupiter air quality

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New Mexico

UNM plans to build new gates along Central

Published

24 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

UNM plans to build new gates along Central

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico plans to build new gates at four campus entrances along Central that will close nightly.

The gates will replace manual barriers in a project expected to cost about $1.5 million.

The Board of Regents approved the security upgrades for the UNM campus.

University officials said the gates will automatically close nightly from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

The gates will go in near Princeton Drive, Stanford Drive, Yale Boulevard and Terrace Street on the south end of campus.

A current rendering shows the gate completely blocking the road. Officials said the change will reduce unauthorized traffic and allow police officers to focus more effectively on prevention and response.

Construction will start in May. University officials hope to finish the project by September.

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New Mexico

9-year-old who pleaded to go to spelling bee is released from ICE detention

Published

1 day ago

March 25, 2026

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9-year-old who pleaded to go to spelling bee is released from ICE detention

A 9-year-old boy who begged to be released from an immigration detention center so he could attend his state spelling bee has been freed with his family, their lawyer said Wednesday.

Deiver Henao Jimenez made the plea during a video call this month with children’s entertainer Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Accurso.

“I don’t want to be here anymore,” Deiver said on the call, which was later shared on Accurso’s social media pages. “Nothing is good here.”

He and his parents, asylum-seekers from Colombia, had been held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in South Texas since early March, when they were detained during a routine immigration check-in in New Mexico, according to their lawyer, Corey Sullivan Martin.

ICE freed the family on humanitarian parole Wednesday, about a week after Martin filed a request for their release and days after NBC News reported on their case.

Deiver Henao Jimenez finished third in a Spanish spelling bee organized by Las Cruces, N.M., Public Schools.Las Cruces Public Schools

His elementary school principal wrote a letter in mid-March supporting the family’s release, which was later delivered to immigration officials, describing Deiver as “a dedicated student with excellent attendance and high marks.”

Sullivan Martin said Deiver is eager to return to school, rejoin his gifted and talented classes and get back to practicing his spelling words.

“I don’t see how it was necessary at all to detain a child who was doing exactly what we want children to do,” Sullivan Martin said.

The family planned to return to New Mexico, she said, where they will continue checking in with immigration officials while their case proceeds.

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Deiver was released a day after ICE freed another child whose case drew widespread attention following a video call with Accurso. Gael, a 5-year-old boy with developmental disabilities, had experienced worsening medical issues while he was detained at Dilley, his parents said.

The facility has faced growing scrutiny from immigration lawyers and advocates, who say children there have struggled to access adequate medical care and education in an environment where lights remain on around the clock and officers stand guard. Some families have described poor food and long waits for medical attention.

DHS has disputed those accounts, saying families are provided appropriate care in a facility designed for their needs.

After her video meetings with the children, Accurso — known for her signature pink headband and singsong delivery — called for Dilley to be shut down and for families to be returned to their communities.

During their conversation, Deiver told Accurso he missed his friends and said the food at Dilley made his stomach hurt. But he was most worried about getting out in time to compete in New Mexico’s state spelling bee in May after he earned a spot by placing third at a regional competition.

“We’re trying to get a child out of a jail to do a spelling bee,” Accurso said last week. “I just never thought those words would go together.”

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