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A flash flood in a New Mexico resort town traps many in their homes and vehicles

A state official reported that flash flooding in New Mexico caused by monsoon rains trapped dozens in their homes and vehicles around Ruidoso, a mountain resort village. The floods also swept an entire home away.

The house was ripped apart from its foundations and careened through the brown, muddy water of the flood-engorged Rio Ruidoso. It smashed trees on the way.

"I have seen the video." Danielle Silva, spokesperson for New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said: "We don't know who was inside the house."

No immediate reports of death or injury from Tuesday's floodwaters have been confirmed.

Silva reported that emergency teams, pre-positioned in Ruidoso by local law enforcement, and the National Guard, conducted at least 85 rapid-water rescues, including many victims who had been stranded by flooding in their homes and cars.

Silva reported that the river rose quickly to a record-breaking 20.24 feet (6.22 metres) during the flood of late afternoon. As the floodwaters started to recede, the authorities began searching through the debris for survivors.

She said that the intensity of the debris flow had been heightened by the charred landscape that was left by the wildfires that swept through the area in June last year, and the subsequent flooding that eroded soil.

Ruidoso, a popular ski resort and summer getaway in south-central New Mexico's Sierra Blanca range is located about 115 miles south of Albuquerque.

The latest flooding occurred in Texas Hill Country four days after a flash flood caused by torrential rainfall along the Guadalupe River devastated a large area of Texas Hill Country. At least 109 people were killed and scores more are still missing. Reporting by Steve Gorman, Los Angeles; editing by Michael Perry

(source: Reuters)