Flash Flooding Kills Three in New Mexico Town Still Recovering From Wildfires

A flash flood tore through Ruidoso, New Mexico on Tuesday, killing three people including two children and destroying homes in a mountain town that's been hammered by disaster after disaster over the past year.

The flood hit incredibly fast. Around 2 p.m. Tuesday, heavy rain started dumping just west of Ruidoso, including directly over areas burned by last year's devastating South Fork Fire. This created the perfect recipe for catastrophic flooding.

The National Weather Service issued a rare flash flood emergency Tuesday, warning of a "DANGEROUS situation" and telling residents to "seek higher ground now."

About 2.5 inches of rain fell rapidly, creating a violent surge of runoff into the Rio Ruidoso. The river rose more than 19 feet in less than an hour and ultimately peaked at a record-breaking 20.24 feet - 5 feet higher than the previous record from last year. That spike was the highest since data collection began back in 1978.