ROSWELL, NM – Rare Flash Flood emergencies were issued for parts of New Mexico Saturday night and Sunday morning after heavy rain and thunderstorms lashed the region, sending water into homes and surrounding vehicles as first responders rushed to rescue trapped residents in Roswell.

The relentless precipitation also broke records in the area, with the National Weather Service office in Albuquerque saying Roswell set a record of 5.78 inches per day, breaking the previous record of 5.65 inches set in November 1901.

HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER

Chaves County Sheriff Mike Herrington took to Facebook early Sunday morning amid the flooding, saying he was trapped after water surrounded his vehicle.

“Right now I’m sitting on the roof of my police truck,” he said in a video. “I’m completely surrounded by water right now.”

As Herrington pans the camera around, several other vehicles can be seen surrounded by the floodwaters as the water flows by.

“There are multiple vehicles,” he said. ‘I came into this not expecting so much water. And before I knew it, I was sucked into this. Several vehicles were also swept away. So to all of you in Chaves County, please stay home, don’t go out. out.”

New Mexico State Police said on X, formerly Twitter, that all roads leading into and out of the Roswell area were closed due to the amount of flooding that had occurred. They have not yet given a timetable for reopening the roads.

The Flash Flood Emergencies have now passed, but flood warnings remain in effect in parts of eastern New Mexico, including cities such as Roswell and Las Vegas.

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The NWS said between 4 and 10 inches of rain fell in the Roswell area, and many areas were flooded.

“This is an ongoing dangerous flooding situation,” the NWS warned.

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More thunderstorms are also forecast for the area on Sunday, and NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center (SPC) placed parts of the region at a risk level of level 2 out of 5 on the 5-point risk scale for severe thunderstorms.

The SPC said the main threats are heavy rain, large hail and damaging wind gusts. There is also the risk of some tornadoes.