Pauline heads for Mexico
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This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from October 1997.
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Hurricane Pauline had sustained winds of 98 mph (60.9 kph), and the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said it was expected to become a Category 3 hurricane - with winds over 115 mph (185.1 kph) - by late Tuesday.
Mexico issued a hurricane warning from Tapachula to Punta Maldonado, saying 12-foot (3.7-metre) seas were expected to wallop the coast, and El Salvador declared a national state of alert.
Brian Jarvinen, a meteorologist with the Hurricane Center in Miami, said Pauline was expected to head toward the southern Mexican coast, possibly hitting land by Thursday.
At 0900 GMT Tuesday, Pauline was about 230 miles (370 kilometres) south-southeast of the Mexican port of Salina Cruz and moving north-northwest at 5 mph (8 kph).
Authorities in Puerto Madero, near Mexico's border with Guatemala, closed their port Monday and others along the coastline were expected to follow. El Salvador's National Emergency Committee declared a state of alert, warning people in floodprone areas that further downpours are possible.
Remnants of a previous storm, Olaf, have soaked Central America and Mexico with 10 days of heavy rain that was responsible for at least four deaths.
