Tropical Storm Arlene hit Central Mexico hard

Central Mexico hit hard by Tropical Storm

On Thursday, the first tropical storm in the Atlantic season hit hard on Mexico’s central gulf.  The storm brought heavy rains over a large portion of the country though, causing little damage.

The Tropical Storm Arlene’s center landed on CarboRojo, a cape just off the mainland, in between the cities of Tampico and Tuxpan.  The storm is expected to weaken in Thursday night, and dissipate the next day.

Authorities are very much concerned with the safety of residents and possible damages, citing that flash floods and mudslides are being monitored in 13 states.

The rains were welcomed in in northern Tamaulipas who, prior to the storm was experiencing its most severe drought in the last 50 years.

"There is nothing to regret and so far the rains have been favorable," Tamaulipas state Civil Protection Secretary Pedro Benavides said. Adding, "We hope it keeps raining."

The coastal towns of Tamaulipas and Veracruz are lucky to have escaped the possible serious damages caused by Arlene.

Authorities said there was minor flooding in low-lying areas in the port city of Tampico.  In Madero and Altamira small sea vessels are forewarned not to dock in their coasts to avoid private property damages.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that Arlene has maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (100 kph), and is moving at 8 mph (13 kph).

Posted by James Fried on Friday July 01 2011, 2:19 AM EST. Ref: yahoo news. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0