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Rio Puerco near Bernardo

Highest listed crest 27.90 ftFlood stage 19.5 ft15 crests since 1941

The Rio Puerco near Bernardo crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 15 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1941 to 2018. The highest, 27.90 ft on September 23, 1941, was major flooding, 8.40 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
27.90 ft
September 23, 1941; 18,800 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
19.5 ft
Major flooding from 27.0 ft
Crests at major
1
6th of 46 gauges in New Mexico
Most recent flood crest
July 27, 2018
20.27 ft, minor flooding
Location
Socorro County
New Mexico

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Rio Puerco near Bernardo
Action stage18.00—The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)19.53Jul 27, 2018Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage23.00—Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage27.01Sep 23, 1941Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

15 crests from 1941 to 2018. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Rio Puerco near Bernardo, 1941 to 2018 1015202530ft Flood stage 19.5 ftMajor 27.0 ft Sep 23, 1941: 27.90 ft, major flooding; 18,800 cubic feet per secondSep 27, 1954: 15.75 ft, below flood stage; 7,920 cubic feet per secondAug 12, 1955: 16.90 ft, below flood stage; 8,000 cubic feet per secondAug 13, 1967: 16.60 ft, below flood stage; 7,860 cubic feet per secondOct 24, 1969: 13.30 ft, below flood stage; 6,940 cubic feet per secondSep 14, 1972: 14.50 ft, below flood stage; 9,220 cubic feet per secondAug 18, 1994: 15.71 ft, below flood stage; 3,010 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 1996: 10.25 ft, below flood stage; 1,330 cubic feet per secondSep 25, 1997: 10.44 ft, below flood stage; 1,280 cubic feet per secondAug 6, 1999: 11.18 ft, below flood stage; 1,330 cubic feet per secondSep 14, 2003: 15.56 ft, below flood stage; 2,740 cubic feet per secondApr 7, 2004: 12.02 ft, below flood stage; 1,650 cubic feet per secondAug 10, 2006: 19.52 ft, minor flooding; 6,210 cubic feet per secondSep 16, 2013: 21.22 ft, minor flooding; 7,131 cubic feet per secondJul 27, 2018: 20.27 ft, minor flooding; 7,684 cubic feet per second Highest, 27.90 ft, Sep 23, 1941 1950196019701980199020002010

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Rio Puerco near Bernardo 1940s: 1 1950s: 0 1960s: 0 1970s: 0 1980s: 0 1990s: 0 2000s: 1 2010s: 2 2 1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s
  1. These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
  2. Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.
  3. 1 crest measured on an earlier gauge datum is left out: 15.00 ft on Aug 18, 1956.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Rio Puerco near Bernardo
1Sep 23, 194127.90+8.40Major18,800
2Sep 16, 201321.22+1.72Minor7,131
3Jul 27, 201820.27+0.77Minor7,684
4Aug 10, 200619.52+0.02Minor6,210
5Aug 12, 195516.90−2.60Below flood stage8,000
6Aug 13, 196716.60−2.90Below flood stage7,860
7Sep 27, 195415.75−3.75Below flood stage7,920
8Aug 18, 199415.71−3.79Below flood stage3,010
9Sep 14, 200315.56−3.94Below flood stage2,740
10Sep 14, 197214.50−5.00Below flood stage9,220
11Oct 24, 196913.30−6.20Below flood stage6,940
12Apr 7, 200412.02−7.48Below flood stage1,650
13Aug 6, 199911.18−8.32Below flood stage1,330
14Sep 25, 199710.44−9.06Below flood stage1,280
15Jun 28, 199610.25−9.25Below flood stage1,330

Socorro County: every hazard · River floods across the country · New Mexico

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge BNDN5, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.