2014-06-04 Environment
Mexico: Tropical depression Boris packs heavy rain
TUXTLA GUTIÉRREZ, Mexico – A storm named Boris that’s lingering off Mexico’s west coast was downgraded to a tropical depression on June 4 but is still packing heavy rains that could cause deadly flash floods and mudslides.
The warning from the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Boris could dump as much as 50 centimeters of rain in some parts of the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca.
Boris was expected to make landfall later on June 4, according to the center’s tracking map.
The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of almost 55 kilometers an hour, down slightly from June 3. It was still moving toward the north at seven kilometers an hour.
But Boris is expected to weaken later on June 4.
In Guatemala, rough weather produced a landslide that killed six people near the Mexican border on May 31.
The national disaster relief agency said as many as 100,000 people have been affected by bad weather that has caused damage to homes and roads. Schools also have been closed in parts of Guatemala.
Last week, the remnants of Hurricane Amanda were blamed for three deaths in Guerrero and the neighboring state of Michoacán.
[AFP (Mexico), 04/06/2014; Milenio (Mexico), 04/06/2014; El Financiero (Mexico), 03/06/2014; Prensa Libre (Guatemala), 31/05/2014; Siglo 21 (Guatemala), 31/05/2014]
