Las Cruces police remind drivers to be cautious following heavy rainfall

Following the heavy rainfall in Las Cruces on Wednesday night, the police department would like to remind drivers to exercise caution in deep water.

“When there’s a washed-out road, or water on the road, they think wrongly I can drive that,” said Dan Trujillo, a spokesman for the department. “Many times, they can’t.”

The department recommends keeping a safe amount of space between vehicles on a wet roadway and pulling over when necessary.

The Las Cruces Farm and Ranch Museum received an inch of rain Wednesday night, according to ABC-7’s StormTRACK Weather Team. However, the water came down very quickly, pooling in some streets.

During this time of year, there is also a risk of lightning. Four years ago, ABC-7 brought the story of several middle school football players and a coach who survived a lightning strike while they were practicing.

“We were very fortunate in that incident that there were no major injuries and of course, no loss of life,” Trujillo said. “But it was a good wake-up call for us and a lot of coaches.”

The department advises not to swim, shower, bathe or wash dishes during a lightning storm. Because lightning strikes taller objects, avoid wide open areas and trees during a storm.