Hurricane Agatha was seen from the satellite. Photo: AP
Agatha, the first storm of the season that will begin this June 1, it is about to landfall on monday along resorts and fishing villages on Mexico’s southern Pacific coast, amid warnings of dangerous storm surge and flooding due to heavy rain.
After reaching the strength of the storm on Sunday, Agatha quickly strengthened and was expected to landfall. on Monday afternoon or the night there category 2 forcereported by the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
The meteor’s eye is heading for an area near the towns of Puerto Escondido and Puerto Ángel, in the south of the state of Oaxaca, a region that includes the tourist communities of Huatulco, Mazunte and Zipolite.
Early Monday, the Center reported that Agatha had the highest sustained air of 175km/hJust 1.6 km/h (1 mph) below category 3. Its vortex is located about 110 kilometers southwest of Puerto Ángel and moves towards the northeast at 9 km/h (6 mph).
The center said to expect little change before Agatha landfalls. The storm warning is in effect between the port of Salina Cruz and the Chacahua lagoon.
The State Coordination of Civil Protection of Oaxaca published photos on Sunday of fishermen lying in their boats on the shore to protect them from the storm, while the outer bands of the storm they have already begun to hit the shore.
People were protecting the windows before the storm came to Puerto Escondido. Photo: Reuters
closed beaches
The municipal authority of Huatulco ordered the complete closure of all beaches from the tourist center, including its famous seven bays, many of which are only accessible by sea. They also closed schools and began building shelters.
To the west, in Zipolite, a town known for bare beaches and its bohemian atmosphere, the staff of the small Casa Kalmar hotel took all the furniture on the beach and installed wooden shutters to prevent strong winds from the doors and windows were broken. “The biggest concern here is the wind, the wind,” the hotel manager said, Silvia Ranfagni.
With just one guest and many cancellations Because of the storm, Ranfagni planned to wait for Agatha’s arrival at the property, located three or four blocks from the beach.
The outer bands of the storm are already hitting some parts of Mexico. Photo: Reuters
“I’ll be confined here with my animals,” he said, referring to his dog and cat.
The Centro Mexicano de la Tortuga _a former slaughterhouse that became the conservation center in Mazunte_ has announced that it will be closed to visitors until further notice due to the arrival of the storm.
destructive waves
Hurricane Center warns dangerous coastal flooding Y destructive waves near the place where Agatha will landfall. He said he expects the meteor to drop 10 to 16 inches (250 to 400 millimeters) of rain in parts of Oaxaca, with isolated heights of 20 inches (500 millimeters).
The Hurricane Center warns of dangerous coastal flooding and destructive storm surges. Photo: Reuters
Blowing 215 km per hour
The storm, which formed this Sunday in the Pacific, is moving northwest at a speed of 9 kilometers per hour while having sustained winds of 175 kilometers per hour and streaks of 215.
SMN is forecasting exceptionally heavy rain in Oaxaca over the next few hours.
Hurricane Agatha will enter the Pacific coast. Photo: AP
It also expects heavy hourly rain (75 to 150 millimeters) in Chiapas, Tabasco, Guerrero and Veracruz and heavy to very heavy rain (50 to 75 millimeters) in Campeche, Yucatán and Quintana Roo.
Also, he warned that there would be wind gusts of more than 120 kilometers per hour on the coast of Oaxaca, and more than 80 kilometers per hour in Guerrero and Chiapas, as well as waves of 4 to 6 meters on the coasts of same state. .
As a result, SMN has driven the population of the aforementioned states already take extreme precautions against rain, wind and waves (including maritime navigation) and meet the recommendations issued by the National Civil Protection System.
AP and EFE
ap
Source: Clarin