Hurricane Alex spares Texas, kills eight in Mexico

Environment News Service: Hurricane Alex made landfall Wednesday night in northeastern Mexico as a Category Two storm, hammering residents of the Mexican Gulf coast and south Texas with heavy rain and winds. About 2 am local time, the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2010 season blasted ashore in central Tamaulipas state, near the fishing town of La Pesca and about 20 miles north of the inland city of Ciudad Victoria.

Landfall missed Brownsville, which lies about 110 miles to the north, but flooding rains and gusty winds put sections of the city underwater. Highways and bridges were closed but have since reopened as crews work to pump water from flooded neighborhoods.

…Yesterday, President Barack Obama issued an emergency disaster declaration for Texas that enables the Federal Emergency Management Agency to identify, mobilize and provide the needed equipment and resources to deal with the emergency. Texas Governor Rick Perry issued a state disaster proclamation for 19 counties.

…Farther west, eight people died in two separate incidents in Monterrey, the capital city of the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon, authorities said today, although the state civil protection department evacuated 5,000 residents to emergency shelters. Jorge Camacho Rincon, head of Nuevo Leon's civil protection department warned at a news conference that residents "should consider the hurricane as a danger across the whole of the state's territory." He urged vigilance on the part of those living near rivers, streams and canals.

…Alex continues to weaken as it moves further inland across northeastern Mexico. The National Hurricane Center in Miami says outer rain bands associated with the storm continue to develop across portions of deep south Texas and move westward and the threat of heavy rainfall is forecast to persist through tonight....

From NOAA, infrared satellite view of Hurricane Alex (2010) at landfall in northeastern Mexico.