MEXICO: Hurricane Lane moves along Mexican coast as a Category 3 storm

Powerful Hurricane Lane thrashed western Mexico with fierce winds and torrential rain on Saturday (September 16) after a rampage along the Pacific coast that killed a child and flooded towns. The storm, a dangerous Category 3 hurricane, slammed into the coast in a rural area between the northwestern city of Culiacan and the tourist resort of Mazatlan. Rain fell in Culiacan, capital of Sinaloa state, and shopkeepers rushed to tape up store windows to stop them shattering in winds due to reach nearly 125 mph (205 mph). The storm had been expected to move up through the Sea of Cortez and make landfall farther north on Sunday but it swung suddenly to the east and took aim at the coastline. Officials said they were warning residents to treat the storm seriously. "Now we are spreading out the resources to everyone - we are coordinating in this preventative stage - above all, orienting the population and preparing ourselves for the rescue phase and to return to the ordinary lives of communities. Above all, we are making a call - to those who are not helping, to the residents of the fishing villages and the areas that are part of Barra de Piaxtla - to take necessary precautions," said the governor of Sinaloa, Jesus Aguilar Padilla. The Miami-based U.S. National Hurricane Center warned of possible flash floods and mud slides. "Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion," it said. Tourists and residents in the exclusive beach resort of Los Cabos at the tip of Mexico's Baja California peninsula breathed a sigh of relief as it escaped damage from a hurricane for the second time in two weeks. Heavy rains from Lane caused a rockslide in Acapulco that crushed a house and killed a 7-year-old boy, local authorities said on Friday. More than 1,000 people were evacuated when a canal overflowed in the port of Lazaro Cardenas, floods cut main roads and an independence day military parade was cancelled in Culiacan. Los Cabos celebrated the eve of Mexican independence day on Friday night with fireworks and traditional parties in restaurants festooned with balloons in the red, white and green national colours. Extending south from the U.S. state of California, the peninsula is still reeling from Hurricane John, which killed at least three people when it struck there earlier this month. Los Cabos sent thousands of tourists packing two weeks ago when Hurricane John hit, but had a narrow escape.

ITN Source | September 17, 2006

Tags:. .mexico. .flash. .western. .sent. .preventative