Albuquerque church still recovering after June flooding

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A small church in northeast Albuquerque is still recovering after devastating flooding swept through the metro last month.

It was a morning Vince Carrillo did not expect. When the senior pastor at X Factor Church showed up at the building, water was everywhere.

“The water came from Montclaire and just came rushing down here,” he said. “Then this area just became a pool of water.” It didn’t end there.

“The water needed a place to go, so it worked its way over here to our window well,” he explained.

Carrillo said water filled the basement, hitting the 10-foot ceilings and overflowing onto the stairs. He said the flooded basement destroyed about $10,000 worth of computer equipment and $10,000 worth of other items, including materials for their annual fall festival and holiday season.

“Sadly, we lost 10 years of Christmas decorations,” said Carrillo. He said they had four cleanup days and even hired a professional company to help.

“It was really amazing how this community came together; all the church members have incredible hearts to serve,” he said. “Now, we have to paint and redo the floors right there.”

A month after the flooding, the church is still trying to recover. Without flood insurance, the church is accepting direct donations. They have a GoFundMe to replace what was damaged .

“We’re a church that really wants to be part of this community. So, because we lost our Christmas decorations and a ton of our fall carnival decorations, it really hampers our ability to reach this community,” said Carrillo.

In the meantime, he said they are going to move their storage unit to prevent any water pooling on their property in the future. To donate to the church, click here .

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