Enter any address in Lincoln County, New Mexico to see its FEMA flood zone
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates Lincoln County's flood risk. Over the past 30 years, NOAA Storm Events data shows 115 flash flood events, resulting in 2 fatalities, compared to 3 general flood events with 1 fatality. For example, intense rainfall caused flash flooding and debris flow on burn scars near Ruidoso in June 2025, and similar conditions led to flooding downstream of burn scars in Lincoln in August 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims data indicates that properties in Zone A have experienced the most frequent claims, with an average payout of $65,573 and an average water depth of 10.3 feet. Properties in Zone X also show significant claims, averaging $56,905 with an average water depth of 14.8 feet, despite being designated as moderate flood risk areas. Residents in Zone A and Zone X, particularly those in low-lying areas or downstream of burn scars, should pay the most attention to flood risk.
Summary generated from NOAA storm narratives and NFIP claim data for this county. Not predictive.
94 NOAA storm reports from this county describe what happened, in the words of the meteorologists who were there.
Lincoln County, New Mexico has recorded 118 flood-related events since 1996 according to NOAA's Storm Events Database, including 115 flash floods and 3 river or area floods. The county has received 35 federal disaster declarations, 9 of which involved flooding or coastal storms. Enter any address above to check its FEMA flood zone designation.
FEMA Disaster Declarations (1965–2025)
Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries.
| Declaration | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Landslides | Flood | Jun 23, 2025 |
| Salt Fire | Fire | Jun 17, 2024 |
| South Fork Fire | Fire | Jun 17, 2024 |
| South Fork Fire, Salt Fire, And Flooding | Fire | Jun 17, 2024 |
| Blue 2 Fire | Fire | May 16, 2024 |
| Mcbride Fire | Fire | Apr 12, 2022 |
| Nogal Canyon Fire | Fire | Apr 12, 2022 |
| Wildfires, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Mudflows, And Debris Flows | Fire | Apr 5, 2022 |
| Three Rivers Fire | Fire | Apr 26, 2021 |
| Covid-19 | Biological | Jan 20, 2020 |
NOAA Storm Events Database (1996–2025)
Source: NOAA National Weather Service Storm Events Database.
| Type | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 31, 2025 | 50.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jul 31, 2025 | 20.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jul 30, 2025 | 250.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jul 30, 2025 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Aug 29, 2025 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Sep 28, 2025 | 10.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jun 28, 2025 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jul 28, 2025 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jul 27, 2025 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Jun 26, 2025 | 75.00K |
Flash Flood — Jul 31, 2025
A disturbance rotating north around the upper high circulation centered over south central U.S. followed by a backdoor front entering eastern New Mexico in the middle of the week increased monsoon moisture and shower and thunderstorm coverage across the state. Daily slow moving thunderstorms on the Ruidoso burn scars during the afternoon hours resulted in several occurrences flash flooding on a...
Flash Flood — Jul 30, 2025
A disturbance rotating north around the upper high circulation centered over south central U.S. followed by a backdoor front entering eastern New Mexico in the middle of the week increased monsoon moisture and shower and thunderstorm coverage across the state. Daily slow moving thunderstorms on the Ruidoso burn scars during the afternoon hours resulted in several occurrences flash flooding on a...
Flash Flood — Aug 29, 2025
Monsoon Moisture across central and eastern New Mexico along with a backdoor front entering northeast NM resulted in the development of scattered shower and thunderstorm activity across these portions of the state. A slow moving thunderstorm resulted in flash flooding on State Highway 76 near Chimayo. Severe thunderstorms resulted in damaging wind gusts of up to 70 mph across Union and Harding ...
Flash Flood — Sep 28, 2025
A troughing pattern from the Pacific brought in a late season monsoon burst of moisture to the Desert Southwest. Strong to severe thunderstorms developed over portions of the state with more locally heavy rainfall events occurring from the abundant monsoon moisture. Flash flooding was observed in several locations ranging from near El Malpais south of Grants, NM, in Navajo Nation west of Crownp...
Flash Flood — Jun 28, 2025
Despite a relative downtick in monsoon moisture over the weekend, slow storm motions of thunderstorms developing near or directly over the Ruidoso area burn scars resulted in flash flooding on June 26th and 28th. Swift moving water was reported to run down the Rio Ruidoso on the 26th, destroyed one small bridge crossing in the Upper Canyon area. Similar burn scar flash flooding resulted in the ...
Source: NOAA National Weather Service Storm Events Database.
Source: OpenFEMA NFIP Individual Claims (2.25M records analyzed).
FEMA assigns flood zone designations to areas in Lincoln County, New Mexico:
AE High Risk — 1% annual chance of flooding. Insurance required.
VE Very High Risk — Coastal flooding with wave action.
X (Shaded) Moderate Risk — 500-year floodplain.
X Low Risk — Outside major floodplains.
Properties in Lincoln County, New Mexico that are in FEMA-designated Special Flood Hazard Areas (zones A and V) with federally backed mortgages are required to carry flood insurance.
Even outside high-risk zones, flood insurance is recommended. From 2014 to 2024, nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area.
Visit FloodSmart.gov to find an agent and get a quote.