The mountain village of Ruidoso has returned to the grim rituals of rebuilding from flash flooding. Crews are working to clear twisted metal, broken trees and muddy debris from streets and homes days after monsoon rains triggered a deadly flash flood in southern New Mexico.

The reemergence of the New World screwworm, which poses significant health risks for livestock, has prompted the Department of Agriculture to halt cattle shipments from Mexico to the United States. The move marks at least the second time this year that cattle imports from Mexico have been suspended over the parasitic fly.

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.

Raging floodwaters in Ruidoso in southern New Mexico killed at least three people, including two children overnight according to authorities. Officials confirmed a Fort Bliss soldier and their spouse are in the hospital with serious injuries and that their two children are among the dead.

The neighbouring state of Texas also experienced a major flood just a few days earlier, but with a very different outcome. The ferocity of the inundation in Texas caught forecasters and state officials by surprise, killing at least 119 people.