Hurricane Karl death toll rises to 18 in Mexico

September 21st, 2010 - 11:26 pm ICT by BNO News  

MEXICO CITY (BNO NEWS) — At least 18 people died in Mexico in severe storms caused by Hurricane Karl, which affected eigth different states, officials said Tuesday.

Last Friday, Karl made landfall in Mexico’s Gulf coast as a category three hurricane, causing heavy rains and mudslides in the states of Veracruz, Tabasco, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tlaxcala, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

In Veracruz, 12 people were reported dead and around 40,000 displaced by the flooding of rivers and ditches. Several people have been reported missing, and the lack of security has spawned looting and social chaos as well. President Felipe Calderon visited the damaged regions of the state.

Laura Gurza, Director of Government Civil Protection, said around 140,000 117 municipalities in Veracruz were affected, representing 68 percent of the state’s total population. State Governor Fidel Herrera stated that the economic income and employment activities of around 1 million people have been affected as well.

Tabasco’s agriculture was devastated by the severe weather, which damaged 385,508 hectares (952,611 acres) of land, affecting almost 150,000 people across the state and killed at least one person.

In the southern state of Oaxaca, one person has been reported dead, another as missing, and 2,000 homes have been waterlogged. Two people in the state of Puebla died and two injured as 19 highways were damaged along with 131 homes.

In Nuevo Leon, in the northern region of Mexico, two people were reported dead after 48 hours of constant rain that caused flooding, mudslides, and several vehicle accidents.

Related Stories

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Posted in Environment |

Subscribe