Mexican states hit by hurricane and earthquake
Government mobilizes army and navy to cope with refugees
MEXICO CITY
Two states in north-western Mexico have been hit by a hurricane and an earthquake, prompting local authorities to mobilize the army and set up hundreds of medical units.
The Mexican government has confirmed that Hurricane Odile made landfall near Los Cabos in the state of Southern Baja California on Sunday at 23:45 CDT.
The country’s National Weather Service had been tracking the storm for the last five days. Odile has been rated as a major Category 3 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale, with expected wind speeds of between 178-208 kilometers per hour.
Airports in Southern Baja California state were closed, as were many highways because of Odile, the fifteenth meteorological phenomenon in the 2014 hurricane season according to Mexico’s National Civil Protection body.
Electricity infrastructure has been also damaged by the hurricane.
Over 2,000 navy personnel and 1,100 soldiers are on alert said Luis Puente, National Coordinator of Civil Protection.
Puente confirmed that there are about 30,000 tourists in the state’s hotels, which have been used as shelters for temporary refugees.
The politician said there were 135 medical units ready for victims of the hurricane.
The storm will cause heavy rains in different Mexican states, mainly in the north, like Southern Baja California, Sinaloa, Baja California, Sonora, Nayarit, Jalisco, Durango, Colima, Chihuaha and Michoacan, reported weather authorities.
- Earthquake in Baja California
At 01:50 hours CDT, Mexico’s National Seismological Service registered a moderate 5.2 Richter scale earthquake in the neighboring state of Baja California.
The earthquake was 124 kilometers southwest of San Felipe municipality.
There were no official reports about damage in Baja California caused by the quake.
