Mexico assesses damage from Hurricane Erick as rising rivers leave at least 1 dead

ACAPULCO, Mexico (AP) — Authorities in southern Mexico were still assessing damage and watching rising rivers as rain from the remnants of Hurricane Erick doused the region.

Torrential rains over steep coastal mountains and the landslides and flooding they could generate became ongoing concern for officials after Erick dissipated following a landfall early Thursday on a sparsely populated stretch of coast.

At least one death was confirmed late Thursday, a 1-year-old boy who drowned in a swollen river.

Erick came ashore down southern Mexico’s Pacific coast in the morning as a Category 3 major hurricane, but it landed between the resort cities of Acapulco and Puerto Escondido.

Authorities reported landslides, blocked highways, downed power lines and some flooding as coastal residents, above all in Acapulco, took the storm seriously with memories of the devastating Hurricane Otis in 2023 still fresh in their minds.

With a steady rain falling on Acapulco, residents and remaining tourists emerged to walk outside or visit businesses opening gradually as the remnants of Hurricane Erick scraped by just inland of the resort.

In Puerto Escondido, fishermen searched for and inspected storm-tossed boats and residents cleared downed trees and other debris.

The threat of heavy rain remained in the mountains that rise abruptly behind Acapulco’s famed beaches. Erick spent the day dragging through the coastal mountain range, dropping torrential quantities of rain.

It was expected to dissipate Thursday night over the mountains in Michoacan state.

Erick once had Category 4 strength

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Erick was centered about 155 kilometers (95 miles) north-northwest of Acapulco Thursday night. Its maximum sustained winds were 45 kph (30 mph), degrading it to a low pressure area. It was moving northwest at 20 kph (13 mph).

Erick had strengthened to a Category 4 storm as it approached the coast but weakened before making landfall to a Category 3.

Having doubled in strength in less than a day, Erick churned through an ideal environment for quick intensification. Last year, there were 34 incidents of rapid intensification — when a storm gains at least 55 kph (35 mph) in 24 hours — which is about twice the average and causes problems with forecasting, according to the hurricane center.

One death reported

President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday “the people have reacted very well so far.”

But authorities warned the heavy rain would now become the problem.

Forecasters expected up to 40 centimeters (16 inches) of rain could fall across Oaxaca and Guerrero, with lesser totals in Chiapas, Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco states. The rainfall threatened flooding and mudslides, especially in areas with steep terrain.

Late Thursday, Guerrero state Civil Defense Director Roberto Arroyo said that a 1-year-old boy had died in San Marcos, an inland community southeast of Acapulco in the path of Erick. The child’s mother had tried to cross a swollen river while carrying the child, but he slipped from her arms and drowned.

Residents venture out

Restaurants, shops and supermarkets gradually reopened in Acapulco, but schools were to remain closed across Guerrero on Friday as authorities continued to assess damage, clear debris and monitor rising rivers.

“Many of us were frightened, but now it has passed,” said Juan Carlos Castañeda, a 49-year-old security guard at an Acapulco condominium complex. He said the “tragedy of Otis marked all of us.”

Despite the rain, Castañeda decided to go out for a walk.

Down the coast in the fishing village of Barra Vieja, the wind-whipped surf battered the shore and heavy rain kept residents sheltered indoors.

Perla Rosas, however, was among the few who ventured out, umbrella in hand, to get to her job at a convenience store. “I feel more relaxed now, so I decided to come to work.”

Acapulco still scarred by Otis

Acapulco residents had braced for Erick’s arrival with more preparation and trepidation because of the memory of the devastation two years earlier.

The city of nearly 1 million was hit in October 2023 by Hurricane Otis, a Category 5 hurricane that rapidly intensified and caught many unprepared. At least 52 people died in Otis and the storm severely damaged almost all of the resort’s hotels.

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Cruz reported from Puerto Escondido, Mexico.