Severe thunderstorm warning issued for Gallup, Zuni Pueblo area

Residents from Gallup to Zuni Pueblo were under a severe thunderstorm warning Thursday afternoon as storms moved east at 20 mph with 60 mph wind gusts and small hail. The National Weather Service office in Albuquerque issued the alert at 1:19 p.m. MDT and set it to expire at 2 p.m. MDT, warning that the storm line could damage roofs, siding and trees while blowing dust briefly cut visibility below one-quarter mile.

The warning covered Interstate 40 between mile markers 1 and 31 and named Gallup, Zuni Pueblo, Vanderwagen, Manuelito, Rock Springs, Church Rock, Yah-Ta-Hey, Black Rock, Tse Bonito and Red Rock State Park.

The storms were positioned along a line from near Gallup to 16 miles west of Zuni Pueblo when the warning was issued. The immediate hazards were brief but damaging wind bursts, small hail and fast-changing visibility on open roads, especially where dust lifted into the storm flow.

A severe thunderstorm has hail at least 1 inch in diameter or winds stronger than 58 mph. The gusts in Thursday’s warning met that threshold.

A broader stretch of active weather is moving across western and central New Mexico. Its June 2026 monsoon outlook favored precipitation to run slightly above normal for southern New Mexico in mid-June, with near-to-above-normal precipitation possible over parts of western and central New Mexico in July and August.

Virga and isolated dry thunderstorms can produce abrupt, erratic gusty winds and dry lightning across western New Mexico through Friday, with the threat expanding into much of central New Mexico. In New Mexico, severe thunderstorms tend to peak in the eastern part of the state from April through June and statewide from July through August.