The village of Ruidoso is located in the southern part of New Mexico and is a noted vacation spot boasting camping and recreation amid its expansive forest landscape. World Population Review notes the village rose to a total of 7,600 in 2025. That was a decrease of the population by less than 1% in recent years.

The children, ages four and seven, were swept downstream by a flash flood after the Rio Ruidoso river rose to a record-setting 20 feet.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a flash flood emergency for Ruidoso on Tuesday, warning of rapidly deteriorating conditions and rising river levels

"Nothing can prepare you for coming into a disaster zone and looking through the bodies of small children and my dad," Timmy Feagin told KOAT.

The New Mexico Environmental Department (NMED) has issued a precautionary boil water advisory for the Ruidoso area on Friday, July 11. According to the news release by the

The mother of two children killed in Tuesday's catastrophic floods in Ruidoso issued a public statement, writing in part, "The injuries we have sustained truly show the story of a parent's will to fight and risk their own lives to give their babies a chance.

Survivors of the Ruidoso, New Mexico flash flood recount the horrors of the events that left three people dead and a community recovery.