Red Flag Warning and Fire Weather Watch Issued for Central and Northern New Mexico Through Sunday
This alert is no longer in effect.
NOAA issued it on April 6, 2026, 4 months ago. Warnings of this kind stay in effect for hours to a few days, so this page is a historical record of what was issued, not a current warning. For conditions where you are right now, check weather.gov (US), weather.gc.ca (Canada), the Met Office (UK), or the Bureau of Meteorology (Australia).
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The National Weather Service has issued critical fire weather alerts for much of New Mexico through the weekend due to dangerously high winds and low humidity.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Red Flag Warning
- Affected area
- Central and Northern New Mexico
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS Albuquerque
Fire-weather notices describe conditions that can support rapid fire spread; they do not report that a fire is present. Check local emergency sources for any active incident.
Record status: historical. It was issued 4 months ago; use the issuing agency's live warning service for current conditions in Central and Northern New Mexico.
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in Albuquerque has issued a Red Flag Warning and a Fire Weather Watch for parts of New Mexico. These alerts indicate that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring or are imminent due to a combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and dry fuels.
Affected Areas
The alerts cover several regions across the state:
- Central Highlands (Zone 125): Under a Red Flag Warning today and Saturday, and a Fire Weather Watch on Sunday.
- Northeast Highlands and Northeast Plains: Under a Red Flag Warning on Saturday.
- Western New Mexico, North Central New Mexico, and the Sandia and Manzano Mountains: Under a Fire Weather Watch for Saturday afternoon.
- All of Northern and Central New Mexico: Under a Fire Weather Watch for Sunday.
What You Should Do
Residents are strongly advised to avoid all outdoor burning. Any fires that develop under these conditions will likely spread rapidly and become difficult to control. Local officials and fire crews in the field should be notified of these warnings. On Sunday, extreme fire behavior and long-range spotting are possible, making fire suppression efforts particularly dangerous.
Expected Conditions
Critical to extreme fire weather conditions are expected as follows:
- Humidity: Minimum relative humidity values will drop between 7 and 10 percent each day through Sunday.
- Wind Speeds (Today): Northwest winds of 20 to 25 mph with gusts up to 35 mph.
- Wind Speeds (Saturday): West winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 40 mph.
- Wind Speeds (Sunday): Northwest winds of 30 to 45 mph with damaging gusts reaching between 50 and 70 mph as a cold front moves through the region.
Timeline
- Today (March 13): Red Flag Warning remains in effect until 8:00 PM MDT for the Central Highlands.
- Saturday (March 14): Red Flag Warning is in effect from 12:00 PM (Noon) until 12:00 AM (Midnight) MDT.
- Sunday (March 15): Fire Weather Watch is in effect from 9:00 AM through 8:00 PM MDT.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
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