Family drowns, teen missing as hurricane Beatriz moves along Mexico's Pacific coast

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Family drowns, teen missing as hurricane Beatriz moves along Mexico's Pacific coast

2011-06-22 09:23:42 GMT+7 (ICT)

MIAMI (BNO NEWS) -- A family of three died on Tuesday as hurricane Beatriz moved along the Pacific coast of Mexico, officials said, before weakening to a tropical storm. A teenager who attempted to cross a river remains missing.

Beatriz first emerged as an area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms off of central America on June 14 before it became more organized and developed into a tropical depression on Sunday morning. It strengthened into a tropical storm three hours later before becoming a category one hurricane on early Monday evening.

As Beatriz moved along the Pacific coast of Mexico on Tuesday morning, the Ministry of Public Security and Civil Protection in Guerrero state reported that three people drowned to death in the town of Amatillo, located in the municipality of Acapulco.

According to the ministry, 38-year-old Antonia Lopez Salgado went to the bathroom which is located on a septic tank that has a depth of two meters (6.5 feet). She fell into the tank when the boards that covered the tank broke. They were reportedly softened by the storm.

Her 16-year-old son, Suastegui Gustavo Salgado, and her 38-year-old husband, Aquilino Suastegui Onofre, attempted to rescue her but both also fell into the tank and drowned.

In addition to the three confirmed fatalities, authorities also fear for the fate of 16-year-old Isla Jorge Lucio who was swept away by the current while heavy rains and strong winds battered the region.

Furthermore, the ministry reported that at least a dozen trees fell in the state as a result of Beatriz, injuring a 56-year-old man. Flooding and landslides were also reported throughout the region, but caused no casualties.

After the hurricane moved away from the coast, Beatriz quickly weakened to a tropical storm. "The appearance of Beatriz on satellite imagery has become very ragged over the past few hours as the convective cloud tops have warmed substantially," said U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) senior hurricane specialist Michael Brennan. "Beatriz has likely weakened due to land interaction earlier today and ingestion of dry stable air originating from much colder waters to the west."

As of 2 p.m. PDT (2100 GMT), the center of Beatriz was located about 110 miles (175 kilometers) south-southwest of Cabo Corrientes, a cape on the Pacific coast of the Mexican state of Jalisco. Maximum sustained winds of Beatriz have decreased to near 60 miles (95 kilometers) per hour, with higher gusts.

As tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 70 miles (110 kilometers) from the center, strong winds and heavy rainfall continued to affect portions of the Mexican coast as of late Tuesday evening.

And as the system moves further away, forecasters expect Beatriz to weaken to a tropical depression on early Wednesday morning. "The cyclone should become a remnant low in a couple of days and dissipate by 72 hours, or earlier if the surface circulation loses definition," said Brennan.

Beatriz was the second hurricane of the 2011 Eastern Pacific hurricane season, following Hurricane Adrian which formed off Acapulco in early June. It rapidly strengthened into a category four hurricane but had no direct impact on land. It dissipated on June 12 without causing casualties or damage.

According to figures released in May, NOAA's Climate Prediction Center is expecting a below normal hurricane season in the Eastern Pacific this year. The outlook calls for 9 to 15 named storms, with five to eight becoming hurricanes and one to three expected to become a major hurricane (category 3 or higher).

An average Eastern Pacific hurricane season produces 15 to 16 named storms, with eight to nine becoming hurricanes and four becoming major hurricanes. The Eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30, with peak activity from July through September.

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