Mexico assessing damage from Hurricane Erick after storm killed 2

Residents and authorities in southern Mexico are assessing the damage and watching for rising rivers as rain from the remnants of Hurricane Erick doused the region.

Landslides and flooding were an ongoing concern for officials after Erick – once a Category 4 hurricane — dissipated following landfall early Thursday.

At least two deaths have been confirmed – a 1-year-old boy who drowned in a swollen river in Guerrero state and a man was electrocuted while helping with debris removal in Oaxaca state, officials said.

Erick came ashore down southern Mexico’s Pacific coast Thursday morning as a Category 3 major hurricane. It landed between the resort cities of Acapulco and Puerto Escondido.

Erick had strengthened to a Category 4 storm as it approached the coast, but weakened to a Category 2 storm before making landfall.

Having doubled in strength in less than a day, Erick churned through an ideal environment for quick intensification. Last year, there were 34 incidents of rapid intensification — when a storm gains at least 55 kph (35 mph) in 24 hours — which is about twice the average and causes problems with forecasting, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Authorities reported landslides, blocked highways, downed power lines and some flooding as coastal residents, above all in Acapulco, took the storm seriously with memories of the devastating Hurricane Otis in 2023 still fresh in their minds. Erick wiped out power to more than 120,000 customers at one point. 

“It was very strong, very ugly… the entire town is homeless, without clothes, we have no help,” Francisca Avila, a 45-year-old housewife, told AFP, as she surveyed the loss of most of her belongings.

In Puerto Escondido, fishermen searched for and inspected storm-tossed boats and residents cleared downed trees and other debris. Much of the town of about 30,000 people was left without electricity or cellphone coverage, AFP reported.

The remnants of the storm dissipated Thursday night over the mountains in Michoacan state.

Restaurants, shops and supermarkets gradually reopened in Acapulco, but schools remained closed across Guerrero on Friday as authorities continued to assess damage, clear debris and monitor rising rivers.

“Many of us were frightened, but now it has passed,” said Juan Carlos Castañeda, a 49-year-old security guard at an Acapulco condominium complex. He said the “tragedy of Otis marked all of us.”

Despite the rain, Castañeda decided to go out for a walk.

Down the coast in the fishing village of Barra Vieja, the wind-whipped surf battered the shore and heavy rain kept residents sheltered indoors.

Perla Rosas, however, was among the few who ventured out, umbrella in hand, to get to her job at a convenience store. 

“I feel more relaxed now, so I decided to come to work.”

Erick is the first major hurricane of the Eastern Pacific hurricane season, which runs from May 15 to Nov. 30. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.  

AFP

contributed to this report.