Santa Fe to send water to Las Vegas as city once again struggles with water supply
Pandemic, wildfire, floodwaters and water main leaks: The city of Las Vegas, N.M., has had a chaotic last five years.
Following water system problems that have cut off the supply to thousands of residents and placed the whole city under a boil water advisory, including a recent major leak, Las Vegas is now trucking water in from the city of Santa Fe.
Santa Fe also provided water for its neighbor to the east over the summer after flooding in the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire burn scar knocked ash and silt into Las Vegas' water supply past the point at which it could be treated.
Santa Fe at the time was able to comfortably provide water without straining its own resources, something Water Division Director Jesse Roach said will be even easier in the winter.
"It's never a good time for a water emergency, but in terms of our ability to help, the winter is our low-demand season," Roach said Tuesday. "We have the capacity to help them out without straining our resources."
He noted Santa Fe also has offered to send personnel to Las Vegas to assist with repairs if needed.
The city has been processing about 7 million gallons of water a day recently, Roach said, but it processes more than double some days in the summer. The maximum Las Vegas can take in one day under its agreement with Santa Fe, 400,000 gallons, would be slightly more than 5% of Santa Fe's current daily demand.
The city is selling the water to Las Vegas at $6.06 per 1,000 gallons, its lowest rate. Roach noted the major expense for Las Vegas will be gas and driver time, not the water itself.
Tankers began filling up from two metered hydrants on Santa Fe's south side beginning Monday evening and continued throughout the day Tuesday.
Problems began last week after Las Vegas' water system experienced a leak that led to widespread low pressure and outages through parts of the community. The water system serves about 14,530 users, according to the New Mexico Environment Department.
Work has been underway to fix the leak over the last several days, the city has announced in news releases, but many residents remain without water and officials have been urging those who do have water to only use it when strictly necessary to conserve the supply.
The entire city is currently under a boil water advisory, the New Mexico Environment Department announced Tuesday. The agency said the advisory was required because of turbidity, or cloudiness, in the water system beyond limits set by the Safe Drinking Water Act, but no contamination has been identified in the water system.
Several Las Vegas city officials did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
Las Vegas City Councilor Barbara Perea Casey said she has been fielding nonstop calls from residents without water, estimating she's received 500 in the last two days.
Perea Casey said the leak drained one of the city's water tanks before it could be located, cutting off water to many people in the city.
"Some people have water, some just had a trickle and some have regular water coming in," she said.
She noted the City Council is scheduled to have a special meeting Friday to discuss the water emergency but said she is not sure how long it will take for the issue to be resolved.
Roach said Las Vegas officials had requested water from Santa Fe for three to 30 days.
The water emergency speaks to the importance of having a diversified water portfolio, he said, something Santa Fe has worked hard to create over the years. It now has four main sources of water: the city well field, the Buckman well field, surface water from the Santa Fe River and the Buckman Direct Diversion, which pulls Colorado River Basin flows from the Rio Grande.
If an issue were to occur at the Canyon Road Water Treatment Plant or the Buckman Direct Diversion, the city would be able to fall back on other water sources while it worked to fix the issue.
Having a resilient water system makes it easier to provide aid to surrounding communities as well, such as Las Vegas, Roach noted.
"We're happy to be in a position to be able to help them," he said.
Roach mentioned the issue during Monday night's Public Works and Utilities Committee meeting.
City councilors on the committee appeared supportive: "I think it's important we help our neighbors when we can," Councilor Amanda Chavez said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Storms to pose burn-scar flooding threats in New Mexico ahead of weekend heat
Storms are expected pass over New Mexico's burn scars through Tuesday, posing threats of flooding ahead of an anticipated rise to high temperatures during the weekend. The National Weather Service on Monday issued a flood watch for Tuesday morning through the evening in areas within and downstream of the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire burn scar in Northern New Mexico and in the Ruidoso area in the south-central part of the state, which was affected by last year's South Fork and Salt fires. Storms may bring flash flooding in areas scorched by blazes in recent years. The risk is low in other parts of the state, including in urban areas, according to a weekly weather briefing from the National Weather Service's Albuquerque office. drought map Drought levels throughout the state The Ruidoso burn scar area is a primary concern Tuesday, meteorologist Nico Porcelli said. Burn scars present a higher risk of flooding because fires diminish vegetation, and ash and soot cause water to run off soil, making it become hydrophobic, he added. 'Small amounts of rain can cause large amounts of water to really be funneled through the rivers and creeks and cause flooding concerns,' Porcelli said. Tuesday will bring a 52% chance of rain in Santa Fe, but a marginal risk — 5% to 15% — of excessive rain leading to flash flooding. Tuesday's storms follow Monday afternoon's storms along the central mountain chain, Porcelli said. The National Weather Service in Albuquerque issued severe thunderstorm warnings Monday for parts of Santa Fe, Bernalillo, Lincoln, Socorro, Torrance and Union counties. The agency also issued a flash flood warning Monday for the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire burn scar, which already had seen 1 to 1½ inches of rain by around 4 p.m. Monday, according to Porcelli. 'Usually when we get these kind of rainfall amounts, we get some flash flooding, especially over low-water crossings,' he said. Storms may continue in Eastern New Mexico on Wednesday and Thursday, but the risk of strong to severe storms will be lower, as will the risk of burn-scar flooding. However, Thursday marks the beginning of increased temperatures statewide that could bring heat-related risk through the weekend, particularly in Albuquerque and communities in Southern New Mexico. The weekend will see near- and above-average temperatures, with highs Sunday of 99 and 94 degrees in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, respectively, according to the briefing. In Socorro, Sunday's maximum temperature will be 104 — 13 degrees hotter than Socorro's historical average high in June. 'Not much of a heat concern yet, but it's getting up there,' Porcelli said. 'We're getting into that hottest time of the year, which is usually in late June.'
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Storms to pose burn-scar flooding threats in New Mexico ahead of weekend heat
Storms are expected pass over New Mexico's burn scars through Tuesday, posing threats of flooding ahead of an anticipated rise to high temperatures during the weekend. The National Weather Service on Monday issued a flood watch for Tuesday morning through the evening in areas within and downstream of the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire burn scar in Northern New Mexico and in the Ruidoso area in the south-central part of the state, which was affected by last year's South Fork and Salt fires. Storms may bring flash flooding in areas scorched by blazes in recent years. The risk is low in other parts of the state, including in urban areas, according to a weekly weather briefing from the National Weather Service's Albuquerque office. drought map Drought levels throughout the state The Ruidoso burn scar area is a primary concern Tuesday, meteorologist Nico Porcelli said. Burn scars present a higher risk of flooding because fires diminish vegetation, and ash and soot cause water to run off soil, making it become hydrophobic, he added. 'Small amounts of rain can cause large amounts of water to really be funneled through the rivers and creeks and cause flooding concerns,' Porcelli said. Tuesday will bring a 52% chance of rain in Santa Fe, but a marginal risk — 5% to 15% — of excessive rain leading to flash flooding. Tuesday's storms follow Monday afternoon's storms along the central mountain chain, Porcelli said. The National Weather Service in Albuquerque issued severe thunderstorm warnings Monday for parts of Santa Fe, Bernalillo, Lincoln, Socorro, Torrance and Union counties. The agency also issued a flash flood warning Monday for the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire burn scar, which already had seen 1 to 1½ inches of rain by around 4 p.m. Monday, according to Porcelli. 'Usually when we get these kind of rainfall amounts, we get some flash flooding, especially over low-water crossings,' he said. Storms may continue in Eastern New Mexico on Wednesday and Thursday, but the risk of strong to severe storms will be lower, as will the risk of burn-scar flooding. However, Thursday marks the beginning of increased temperatures statewide that could bring heat-related risk through the weekend, particularly in Albuquerque and communities in Southern New Mexico. The weekend will see near- and above-average temperatures, with highs Sunday of 99 and 94 degrees in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, respectively, according to the briefing. In Socorro, Sunday's maximum temperature will be 104 — 13 degrees hotter than Socorro's historical average high in June. 'Not much of a heat concern yet, but it's getting up there,' Porcelli said. 'We're getting into that hottest time of the year, which is usually in late June.'
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Yahoo
Las Vegas, N.M., residents, businesses grapple with PNM's public safety power shutoff
LAS VEGAS, N.M. — The beam of a heavy-duty DeWalt flashlight swept across the shelves of the Big R store as Michael Velarde searched for a Sharpie marker to buy. Otherwise, the store was dark Thursday, even at 2:30 p.m. Public Service Company of New Mexico had cut the power to the store as part of a public safety outage that affected some 2,300 of its customers in the western area of Las Vegas, N.M., as high winds began blowing through Northern New Mexico. Still, the store remained open and customers trickled in, met by employees wearing headlamps. Initiated at 11:30 a.m., the PNM shutoff was necessary, the electric utility said, to reduce the risk of fire danger amid high winds. Gusts caused other power outages around the state and drove a brushfire that had ignited Thursday afternoon on Bureau of Indian Affairs land west of Bosque Farms. George Ducker of the New Mexico Forestry Division sent a news release Thursday evening about the fast-moving Rio Grande Fire, which had burned several structures and led to evacuations. The fire was estimated at about 150 acres but was growing in red-flag conditions. 'This is becoming the norm' The Las Vegas outage marked PNM's first planned power shutoff in wildfire weather following previous warnings of outages in Santa Fe, the East Mountains near Albuquerque and other areas of the state during a dry spring with days of heavy gusts. 041725_MS_Las Vegas Power_003.JPG Traffic waits a temporary stop sign at the intersection of Mills Avenue and Eighth Street in Las Vegas during a public safety power shutoff Thursday. "It's in response to fire danger throughout the West … and the need to do our part to prevent these catastrophes," said Jeff Buell, a spokesperson for PNM, the largest electric utility in the state. "It is a last-resort step that we take after pretty agonizing deliberations." He estimated power would be restored as early as 3 a.m. Friday. But PNM said in a morning news release customers in the outage area should expect it "to last overnight and up to 48 hours depending on fire conditions and potential damage caused to the system by high winds." The shutoff comes as some electric utilities in Western states, such as California, have at times resorted to enacting blackouts in times when fire risk is high. New Mexico is another state that has seen devastating and costly wildfires in recent years. The decision to shut off the power is one that promises to draw the ire of residents concerned about food in refrigerators souring, among other things, while waiting for service to be restored. But Las Vegas residents perhaps have a unique understanding of fire risk. The Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire, the worst blaze in New Mexico's recorded history, started in 2022 due to a pair of botched federal prescribed burns, leaving thousands of people displaced while destroying hundreds of homes. "I've never heard of that before in my entire life, but I understand their concern," Velarde said of PNM's power shutdown. "They don't want the city to catch fire again." The National Weather Service in Albuquerque had warned of extreme fire conditions Thursday due to a combination of prolonged and increasing drought across the state, high temperatures and heavy wind gusts — part of a pattern of extreme conditions as global climate change intensifies. Drought map According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, more than 98% of New Mexico is now in some level of drought, with the severity of conditions inching upward. Over 80% of the state is in at least severe drought and a third in extreme drought, including northern Santa Fe County, half of Rio Arriba County and swaths of Taos and Sandoval counties, as well as a large area of southwestern New Mexico. Las Vegas Mayor David Romero noted this is becoming a reality in parts of the Southwest where wildfire concerns run high. It's something the city needs to prepare for, he said. "In general, I think this is something, moving forward, the city and also the community are going to have to be prepared for things like this," Romero said. "Nationwide and here within the state, this is becoming the norm within power companies to prevent fires and fires in general." Windy day in Las Vegas Heavy gusts were whipping around signposts as people walked through a business district of the San Miguel County town with their heads lowered. With dust in the air impacting visibility outside of town, Romero said Thursday marked a very strong wind event. "Of course, it's an inconvenience. That's for sure," Romero said. "But you have to understand: Some of these measures that they're taking, they're precautionary, and we did experience the fires." Velarde said he felt the utility's decision to shut off power was something of a double-edged sword for residents and businesses in Las Vegas. "They are taking precautionary measures," he said. "But what about the people that are going to lose all their food? That's a travesty, especially if you are low-income." At the corner of Mills and Eighth streets, traffic lights were dark as drivers approached with uncertainty. Nearby, the doors of a Dollar General were closed; a handmade sign gave the reason: Power outage. "Sorry for the inconvenience; have a wonderful day," the sign said. Dollar General A Dollar General Store in Las Vegas, N.M., was closed Thursday due to a public safety power shutoff initiated by Public Service Company of New Mexico to reduce the threat of wildfire amid high winds. Along with business closures, the power shutdown prompted Luna Community College to close for the afternoon, Facilities Director Matthew Griego said. "We don't have the infrastructure in place for the backup [power] right now," he said. However, New Mexico Highlands University and the local public schools appeared to continue operating throughout the day. "It's business as usual until we hear something from PNM," Highlands spokesperson David Lepre said. The state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said in a statement it was prepared to respond to any requests for help from Las Vegas. "We have helped the local emergency manager identify critical infrastructure that might be impacted and a shelter location in case that becomes a need. We're in constant communication with the local officials and PNM to monitor the situation," the statement said. When will power return? PNM's outage map showed about 1,000 customers in the Belen area, south of Albuquerque, had no service due to power line issues. Other equipment issues left about 1,300 people without power in a southeastern portion of Albuquerque. The Las Vegas shutoff would remain in place "until the extreme weather conditions have passed, and the risk of a wildfire has been reduced," the utility said in a news release Thursday morning. "Current forecasts predict that the weather event will subside by 8 p.m." 041725_MS_Las Vegas Power_002.JPG Jason Lassell, manager of the Big R store in Las Vegas, fills a generator with gasoline during a planned power outage Thursday. Buell said around 5:30 p.m. PNM crews were "standing by," meaning groups of workers were waiting for wildfire conditions to subside before patrolling the power lines and inspecting every inch of the deenergized system to ensure there were no tree limbs that had fallen or "any material caught in the lines or any damage to the lines." "This process will probably take several hours," Buell said. "It's a lengthy process, particularly because it will be mostly during the dark." PNM noted it has "20 miles of lines and more than 800 poles and equipment that must be patrolled, mostly on foot, and possibly repaired" in the Las Vegas area. "This could take an extended amount of time, and PNM is urging customers to prepare to be without power overnight." Staff writers Nicholas Gilmore and Esteban Candelaria contributed to this report
