Sunday’s cold front and heavy rains toppled at least 44 trees, flooded streets, knocked out power and even ignited a small fire started by a lightning bolt in Mérida.
In Progreso, winds reached 90 kph and blew chairs, tables and awnings and briefly knocked out power and phone lines.
On the upside, the oppressive heat is gone, and the smoky fire at the now-waterlogged municipal landfill is out.
All thanks to the cordonazo, the local name for the squalls that come when a low-pressure system collides with a heat wave.
Aarón Palomo Euán, director of Civil Protection, indicated that the rains signify a truce with the heat and the fires that bedeviled Yucatán over the last week.
According to the state Civil Protection office, the worst damage was concentrated in Mérida: fallen trees in Col. El Porvenir, along the Periférico at kilometer 27 and in the Tixcacal-Opichén district.
In the García Ginerés, a CFE transformer was damaged, emitting sparks and interrupting the electric power supply. On Prolongación Paseo de Montejo, a post fell, disrupting power. In the Mulsay neighborhood, the police had to close a street that was flooded.
Elsewhere, a fallen tree was reported in Izamal’s Centro and in Mocochá, a lightning strike caused a fire that consumed about 20 meters of land.
Heavy rains were accompanied by winds of more than 90 kph/56 mph at the coast and 60 kph/37 mph in Mama, Tixkokob, Tekit, Temax, Buctzotz, Dzilam Gonzalez, San Felipe, Dzoncauich, Progreso and Celestún.
Palomo Euán reported that despite heavy rains, winds and electrical activity, there were no major outages or injuries reported.
At the beach, the downpour lasted an hour and flooded numerous streets in the west, east and south, making them impassable; the garbage blowing in the winds and rain blocked storm drains.
Fishing activity was paralyzed, including sea cucumber diving. Fishing is expected to resume today (Monday); the season ends on Saturday.
On the Gulf of Mexico, winds were even higher, around 100 kph/62 mph. A group of fishermen catching grouper were forced to ride out the storm, but their boat was not damaged, according to authorities.
Today is expected to be clear with moderate-to-cool temperatures.
Source: Diario de Yucatán
