Tag Archives: Mexico City

Hurricane Franklin Brings Wind and Heavy Rain to Mexico

Hurricane Franklin brought gusty winds and heavy rain to parts of Mexico when it made landfall on Wednesday night.  The center of Hurricane Franklin made landfall between Veracruz and Nautla near the town of Lechuguillas, Mexico.  The maximum sustained wind speed was 85 m.p.h. (140 km) at the time of landfall, which made Franklin a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale.  Franklin weakened to a tropical storm as it moved inland during the night.

At 8:00 a.m. EDT on Thursday the center of Tropical Storm Franklin was located at latitude 19.8°N and longitude 98.3°W which put it about 60 miles (95 km) east-northeast of the Mexico City, Mexico.  Franklin was moving toward the west at 15 m.p.h. (24 km/h).  The maximum sustained wind speed was 40 m.p.h. (65 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 50 m.p.h. (80 km/h).  The minimum surface pressure was 997 mb.

A Tropical Storm Warning remains in effect for the portion of the coast from Cabo Rojo to Boca Partido, Mexico.

Franklin brought hurricane force winds to the portion of the coast north of Veracruz, Mexico.  Those winds pushed water toward the shore and created a storm surge along the coast.  The highest surge may have reached 6 to 9 feet (2 to 3 meters) near and just to the north of where the center made landfall.  Winds blowing up the slopes of mountains produced very heavy rain and flooding could be occurring in some locations.  The heavy rain will continue as Tropical Storm Franklin moves west across central Mexico.

Tropical Storm Franklin will continue to weaken as it moves across Mexico.  Heavy rain will continue to fall over portions of central Mexico and the potential for additional flooding exists.  The mountains are likely to disrupt the low level circulation.  However, the middle and upper portions of the circulation could remain intact.  Some models are forecasting that Franklin, or its remnants, could redevelop when it reaches the Eastern North Pacific Ocean.