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.

Sandbags protect a building in Ruidoso, New Mexico after floods swept through town in July of 2024. This week's floods rose significantly higher. Photo: The Washington Post

The two children were identified as Charlotte Trotter, 4, and Sebastian Trotter, 7, according to their aunt Tiffanie Wyatt. She said their father, Sebastian Trotter, a solder based at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, and their mother, Stephanie, both suffered serious injuries but survived and were receiving medical treatment at a hospital in Texas.

Mexico has sent water rescue teams and firefighters to help in Texas after the holiday weekend floods that have killed at least 100 people, with many more still missing.

As residents and businesspeople in Ruidoso assess the damage caused by heavy and dangerous flooding, others can find ways to help. Here is what to know.

A house with a turquoise door became a widely shared image of flooding in southern New Mexico when it was swept past a brewery that was designated a safe spot for anyone seeking higher ground.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez and the state’s Department of Justice are warning Ruidoso residents who were affected by the flash floods about potential

Severe thunderstorms will head east by Saturday, impacting eastern Michigan and parts of northern Indiana. One to two inches of rain is possible as the system tracks east, but some areas could see isolated amounts of three to five inches through the weekend.