Perilous Times and Climate Change
Hurricane Frank heads out to Pacific, leaves four dead in Mexico
AFP - Thursday, August 26
[Hurricane Frank heads out to Pacific, leaves four dead in Mexico]
Hurricane Frank heads out to Pacific, leaves four dead in Mexico
MIAMI (AFP) - – Tropical Storm Frank strengthened into the third
Pacific hurricane of the 2010 season on Wednesday, veering west after
soaking Mexico's southern coast, where heavy rains left four dead.
Hurricane Frank packed winds of up to 75 miles (120 kilometers) per
hour, making it a Category One hurricane on the five-level
Saffir-Simpson scale, the US National Hurricane Center said in its
latest advisory.
The storm was about 240 miles south of Cabo Corrientes, Mexico, moving
west-northwest at 13 miles per hour, the NHC reported.
It was not expected to make landfall, although it will pass near tiny
Socorro Island on Friday.
At least four people died, including two buried in a landslide, and two
were missing after heavy rains unleashed by Frank in Mexico's southern
Oaxaca state, local officials said Wednesday.
The rains flooded homes, damaged roads and bridges and affected more
than 100 towns.
Separately, Hurricane Danielle -- the second of the 2010 Atlantic
season -- churned far out over the ocean Wednesday with winds reaching
sustained speeds of 85 miles per hour, the NHC said.
The Category One hurricane was east-northeast of the northern Leeward
Islands, moving northwest at about 17 miles per hour, the NHC said.
Danielle was expected to slow its movement but could strengthen in the
next 48 hours, it added.
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Earl packed winds of up to 40 miles per hour
after forming in the Atlantic, about 520 miles west of the southernmost
Cape Verde islands.
Earl could become a hurricane by Friday, the NHC said.