Puerto Escondido (Mexico) (AFP) – Southern Mexico started the cleanup process Thursday in the aftermath of Hurricane Erick, which slammed into its Pacific coast as a powerful Category 3 storm but weakened as it moved inland. In the tourist town of Puerto Escondido in Oaxaca state, residents and emergency personnel worked to drain flooded streets and clear debris left behind as the storm knocked over trees and street signs and buried boats under sand on the beach. Much of the town of about 30,000 people was left without electricity or cellphone coverage.
The water “had never hit with this magnitude” in Puerto Escondido, 44-year-old merchant Luis Alberto Gil, whose shop was among those flooded, told AFP. No deaths or injuries were reported from Puerto Escondido or elsewhere in the storm zone. Erick weakened to a tropical storm as it moved across southern Mexico on Thursday. “Continued rapid weakening is forecast, and Erick will likely dissipate tonight,” the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in its latest advisory, issued at 2230 GMT.
The center warned of heavy rainfall in the state of Guerrero, with the risk of life-threatening flooding and mudslides. Mexico sees major storms every year, usually between May and November, on both its Pacific and Caribbean coasts. In October 2023, Acapulco, a major port and beach resort in Guerrero, was pummeled by Hurricane Otis, a powerful Category 5 storm that killed dozens of people. Hurricane John, another Category 3 storm that hit in September last year, caused about 15 deaths. Acapulco was largely deserted Thursday, with shops boarded up and tourist boats grounded.
© 2024 AFP
