The hurricane delta struck the Mexican Caribbean coast early on Wednesday and reached maximum wind speeds of 175 km / h.
A weakened delta hit the Yucatan Peninsula near the city of Puerto Morelos as a Category 2 storm, the National Hurricane Center said.
On Tuesday, it had achieved Category 4 status of “extremely dangerous”. The hurricane was downgraded to Category 3 as it approached the peninsula.
It hit Mexico’s Mayan Riviera coast, home to major tourist spots like Cancun, despite the fact that the number of visitors has declined due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands of tourists had taken shelter in shelters as the storm approached with a potentially life-threatening storm surge.
When it got dark on Tuesday, the streets of Cancun were mostly empty, shops closed, and windows covered with panels of wood or taped across to keep them from breaking.
More than 40,000 tourists in Cancun and neighboring resorts have been evacuated, head of the region’s hotel association Roberto Citron told AFP.
Most were Mexicans, but there were also foreigners, especially from the United States.
More than 160 shelters have been set up in Cancún alone.
Authorities said the shelters had been refurbished to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, which has killed more than 81,000 people in Mexico and hit major tourism industries.
“To prevent the spread of COVID-19, the same measures have been taken in the emergency shelters as in hotels, such as the use of gel and face masks,” said Cintron.
Soldiers wearing masks and face shields prepared for relief efforts.
“The order was given to mobilize up to 5,000 soldiers with the equipment necessary to protect the population,” President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told reporters.
Members of the Mexican Army prepare for the Valladolid and Tizimin communities in Merida, Yucatan state, to prepare for the arrival of the Hurricane Delta [Hugo Borges/AFP
Airports shut
The Cancun and Cozumel airports were ordered to close, and non-essential activities in the state of Quintana Roo were suspended.
People living in the area stocked up on food, drinking water and wooden boards to protect their homes as the storm approached.
“We’re rushing to get wood for the windows. We only learned this morning that the hurricane was coming here,” said Laura Mendez, a 54-year-old in Cancun.
Fishermen hauled their boats ashore to prevent them from being swept away.
Delta is forecast to bring heavy rainfall and floods to parts of the southeastern US later this week.
The governors of US states Alabama and Louisiana declared states of emergency on Tuesday ahead of the storm,
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey ordered all tourists and visitors to evacuate coast, and extended a price gouging law, preventing businesses from charging excessive prices, to include hurricane Delta.
As our coastal areas are still recovering from #HurricaneSally, another system, #HurricaneDelta, is making its way toward the Gulf Coast and could potentially have a significant impact on AL. I signed a State of Emergency to begin Alabama’s preparation process. #alwx #alpolitics pic.twitter.com/JS5aiQXCom
— Governor Kay Ivey (@GovernorKayIvey) October 6, 2020
Delta is the 26th named storm of an unusually active Atlantic hurricane season.
Over the weekend, six people died and thousands were forced from their homes as Tropical Storm Gamma triggered floods and landslides in southeastern Mexico.
In September, meteorologists were forced to break out the Greek alphabet to name Atlantic storms for only the second time ever, after the 2020 hurricane season blew through their usual list, ending on Tropical Storm Wilfred.
Tourists are evacuated from their hotel in Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo state, Mexico, in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Delta [Elizabeth Ruiz/AFP]
Comments are closed.