OAN Staff Abril Elfi
11:41 AM – Wednesday, July 9, 2025
At least three individuals, including two children, have lost their lives in flash flooding that recently struck Ruidoso, New Mexico.
On Wednesday, Ruidoso Mayor Lynn Crawford said during a radio interview that Charlotte and Sebastian Trotter, who were visiting from El Paso, Texas, were found deceased after flooding on Tuesday, July 8th.
Officials also said that another unidentified man, estimated to be between 40-to-50-years-old, was found dead as well.
According to authorities, all three victims had been carried away downstream during the flooding from Riverside RV Park by the Rio Ruidoso.
“Our hearts are broken, our stomachs are in knots over the fact that we have lost these folks,” Crawford said.
Before the discovery, a Facebook post shared by a woman identifying herself as the children’s aunt asked for help in finding Charlotte, 5, and Sebastian, 7, who were still considered missing at the time.
“Our hearts are with the family of the children that went missing at an RV Park two miles downriver from us and all those impacted by the devastating flash flood,” Midtown Mountain Campground & RV Park stated on a Facebook post.
“As members of the Ruidoso community, we are deeply saddened by this tragedy and are keeping the family, first responders, and everyone involved in our thoughts and prayers,” they stated.
Ruidoso had been in the process of recovering from last year’s wildfires, which left burn scars across the mountain forest community—areas now highly susceptible to rapid and hazardous flash flooding.
A burn scar is a lot of land in which the vegetation was totally or partially eliminated by the action of fire. Forest fire scars are areas that lost all or part of their vegetation by fire.
Burn scars can lead to flash flooding due to:
- Loss of vegetation: Wildfires destroy vegetation that normally absorbs rainfall and stabilizes the soil. Without this natural barrier, rain runs off much more quickly.
- Soil changes: Intense heat from wildfires can cause soil to become hydrophobic (water-repellent), preventing water from soaking in.
- Steeper runoff: In mountainous areas like Ruidoso, rainwater runs downhill faster over burn scars, increasing the risk of flash floods, especially during storms.
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