Obama to offer sanctuary to millions of Mexicans affected by Patricia

[bendog]

Fema trailers being sent to Greenville and Spartenburg SC.

 

[waltky]

Patricia weakens to Cat 1 hurricane as it hits Mexico...

Mega-storm Patricia drenches Mexico as it weakens
Oct 24,`15 -- Hurricane Patricia pushed rapidly inland over mountainous western Mexico early Saturday, weakening from its record-breaking strength but still powerful as it dumped torrential rains that authorities warned could cause deadly floods and mudslides.

Patricia, which peaked as the strongest hurricane on record in the Western Hemisphere, made landfall Friday on a sparsely populated stretch of Mexico's Pacific coast as a Category 5 storm, avoiding direct hits on the resort city of Puerto Vallarta and major port city of Manzanillo. There were early reports of some flooding and landslides, but no word of fatalities or major damage as the storm pushed across inland mountains and bypassing the metropolis of Guadalajara overnight. Milenio TV carried footage of cars and buses being swept by floodwaters in the state of Jalisco. "The first reports confirm that the damage has been less than those expected from a hurricane of this magnitude," President Enrique Pena Nieto said in a taped address late Friday. He added, however, that "we cannot yet let our guard down."

Mike Anderson of Minnesota, right, fishes alongside his friend and local fisherman Miguel Pilas during a steady rain as Hurricane Patricia approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Friday, Oct. 23, 2015. Hurricane Patricia barreled toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere.​

Patricia weakened to a Category 1 hurricane Saturday morning with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph) and was expected to dissipate over Mexico's inland mountains, becoming a tropical storm later in the day. Its center was about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Zacatecas. Tourist Brandie Galle of Grants Pass, Oregon, said she had been sheltered with other guests in a ballroom with boarded-up windows at the Hard Rock Hotel in Puerto Vallarta. When the city was not feeling any major effects from the storm two hours after landfall, workers let them out to eat at a hotel restaurant. "They said it looked like the storm had hit below us," she said. "Everyone is starting to perk up a little bit but still kind of on edge waiting to see what's going to happen with the storm."

Galle said some guests desperate to leave had earlier paid $400 for taxis to drive them the 120 miles (200 kilometers) to the inland city of Guadalajara. The airports in Puerto Vallarta, Manzanillo and Tepic were closed Friday, but officials announced an air bridge Saturday to ferry stranded travelers out of areas hit by the storm. Residents and tourists had hunkered down in shelters and homes along a coastal stretch dotted with sleepy fishing villages and gleaming resorts. In Puerto Vallarta, residents had reinforced homes with sandbags and shop windows with boards and tape, and hotels rolled up beachfront restaurants.

MORE