Floods and landslides triggered by Tropical Storm “Nadine” claim 3 lives, damage 1 290 homes in Mexico
Floods and landslides triggered by Tropical Storm “Nadine” have claimed at least three lives in Mexico as of October 22, 2024. Severe floods have affected over 1 200 homes in 20 municipalities of the state of Chiapas which has been the worst hit by the storm.
Officials wading through flooded streets to asses damages in the Nuevo San Carlos ejido. Image credit: Protección Civil Chiapas
Tropical Storm “Nadine” brought heavy rains to Mexico after making landfall in Belize on October 19, resulting in severe floods and landslides that have claimed three lives so far.
In the municipality of Tila, two people lost their lives after being buried by a landslide in the town of Carrizal, according to local civil protection authorities. Another fatality occurred in the district of San Juan Chamula, where floodwaters swept away a vehicle, leading to the death of one person.
The state of Chiapas has been severely affected, with at least 20 municipalities experiencing extensive damage. The state’s civil protection services reported that approximately 1 288 homes have been seriously impacted by the torrential downpours and subsequent flooding.
Some regions saw streets submerged in up to 50 cm (19.7 inches) of floodwaters making them impassable.
Several families residing near the Rayón, Tumbalá, Ocosingo, Tila, and Chilón rivers were evacuated after the rivers overflowed their banks.
In the municipality of Cintalpa, at least 21 homes were affected by the flooding, with seven collapsing. Local civil protection services indicated that homes were inundated with 30 – 50 cm (11.8 – 19.7 inches) of water, resulting in significant damage. Authorities have been distributing food and other essential supplies to those displaced by the disaster.
Flooding and landslides have also disrupted infrastructure, submerging fifteen sections of highways and fourteen rural roads. Civil protection services confirmed the formation of a sinkhole on the Palenque-Chancalá highway in La Cascada Ejido.
The sinkhole, measuring 5.9 m (19.4 feet) in length and 5.3 m (17.4 feet) in width, forced the closure of a section of the highway. Meanwhile, authorities removed a fallen tree blocking the road leading to the Mitzit resort, allowing traffic to flow freely.
Tropical Storm “Nadine” made landfall in Belize City at 16:00 UTC (10:00 local time) on Saturday, October 19, with maximum sustained winds of 95 km/h (60 mph).
Nadine is the 14th named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season and the first tropical cyclone to make landfall in Belize since Category 1 Hurricane “Lisa” in 2022.
After moving over Belize, the center of Nadine entered northern Guatemala and moved over southern Mexico through Sunday, October 20.
References:
1 Tormenta tropical “Nadine” deja tres muertos y graves daños en Chiapas – Notisitema – October 21, 2024
2 Nadine deja tres muertos, inundaciones y graves daños tras su paso por Chiapas – Infobae – October 20, 2024
3 Tropical Storm “Nadine” makes landfall in Belize – The Watchers – October 19, 2024
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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