8 dead, 3 missing after Hurricane Grace made second landfall
By
Ryan Adamson, AccuWeather meteorologist &
Adam Douty, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Aug 21, 2021 5:26 PM EDT
Grace brought heavy rain and powerful winds to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula as it made landfall on Aug. 19, before moving back over the Gulf of Mexico.
Following Grace's first landfall in Mexico as a Category 1 hurricane along the eastern Yucatán Peninsula on Thursday, the storm turned deadly on Saturday as it pushed ashore for the second time.
Hurricane Grace made landfall near Tecolutla, Mexico, just before 1 a.m. CDT Saturday. At the time, Grace had sustained winds of 125 mph (200 km/h) and was a strong Category 3 hurricane. If the storm had managed to gain just 5 mph (8 km/h) of additional wind speed, it would have entered Category 4 hurricane territory.
At least eight people, including children, lost their lives and three people were reported missing after mudslides and flooding from Grace, Cuitláhuac Garía, governor of Mexico's Veracruz state where the storm made landfall, said during a press conference on Saturday. Another 33,000 people lost power during the storm, The Associated Press reported.
Grace has been rated as a 3 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes, due to the heavy rainfall, strong wind gusts and storm surge that can create flash flooding, structural damage and power outages.
Although the storm had lost some wind intensity while crossing the Yucatán Peninsula on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Friday morning that Air Force hurricane hunters had found that Grace developed into a hurricane once again over the Bay of Campache. It soon became the first Category 2 hurricane of the Atlantic hurricane season. But the storm wasn't finished growing.
From 11 p.m. EDT Thursday to 11 p.m. EDT Friday, Grace's maximum sustained winds had burst from 65 mph to 120 mph, undergoing a process known as rapid intensification. The qualifications of this process require a storm's maximum sustained winds to grow by over 30 knots (about 35 mph) over a 24-hour span of time.
Grace had intensified into Category 3 major hurricane while just hours away from its second landfall. A hurricane receives the "major" designation at Category 3 or above.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Damaging wind gusts of 40-60 mph (115-145 km/h) are possible near where Grace continues to push inland, following landfall in the first hour of Saturday morning with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 140 mph (225 km/h). This can lead to widespread power outages that may last for several days, along with downed trees and some structural damage.
Heavy rain of 8-12 inches (200-300 mm) can lead to widespread flooding along Grace's track. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ rainfall of 20 inches (500 mm) can cause mudslides in the mountains just inland. Central Veracruz into Puebla, Tlaxcala and Hidalgo will be at the greatest risk for excessive rainfall.
The heaviest rain from Grace is most likely along and to the east of the Sierra Oriental Mountains.
As Grace crosses central Mexico, it can bring a round of heavy rainfall to Mexico City and the surrounding area with 1-2 inches (25-50 mm) possible into Saturday. This can lead to travel disruptions and ponding water in low-lying areas.
While moving westward across Mexico, Grace began to rapidly lose wind intensity, dropping to a tropical storm late Saturday morning and becoming a tropical rainstorm later in the evening. However, it is becoming increasingly likely that what is left of the circulation will reemerge in the eastern Pacific by Sunday night.
A home damaged by winds brought on by Hurricane Grace sits askew near the shore, in Tecolutla, Veracruz State, Mexico, Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021. Grace hit Mexico’s Gulf shore as a major Category 3 storm before weakening on Saturday, drenching coastal and inland areas in its second landfall in the country in two days. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
"The remaining circulation center of Grace will reach the southwestern coast of Mexico late Sunday or Sunday night and move over the East Pacific," explained AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Kottlowski. "It's possible this system could attempt to re-develop into a tropical depression and even a tropical storm in the East Pacific early next week as it moves due west."
If the storm does redevelop on the Pacific side, it will acquire the next name on the Pacific list, which is Marty.
Additional impacts to Mexico seem unlikely once what is left of Grace enters the Pacific, forecasters say. The system is expected to maintain a westward track away from land and into open waters.
Grace has already lashed parts of the Caribbean earlier this week, including areas in Haiti that took a hit from a major earthquake last weekend.
Torrential rains from Grace fell over portions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic Monday night. Grace's stormy conditions hampered rescue and recovery efforts from the enormous temblor. Officials say the earthquake killed over 1,900 people, injured 6,900 others and destroyed thousands of homes.
As a tropical storm and tropical depression, Grace plowed through the Caribbean with gusty winds and heavy rainfall. The storm unleashed 13.6 inches of rain on Kingston, Jamaica, in just 24 hours.
During Grace's first landfall in Mexico, wind gusts as high as 85 mph (137 km/h) were reported near Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, as Grace came ashore on Thursday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center. The resort town of Cancun recorded a sustained wind of 59 mph (95 km/h) and gusts to 80 mph (130 km/h).
Winds of 80-90 mph (130-145 km/h) caused widespread power outages and even some structural damage over parts of the Yucatan Peninsula and on the island of Cozumel.
Locals remove debris from their homes after the passage of Hurricane Grace, in Tulum, Quintana Roo state, Mexico, on Thursday, August 19, 2021. The Category 1 storm made landfall at 4:45 am, just south of the ancient Mayan temples of Tulum, hitting the Caribbean coast with heavy rain and causing a dangerous storm surge. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)
These winds downed tree branches and power lines in Playa del Carmen, just north of where Grace made landfall, according to The Associated Press. Roofs were also ripped off homes in some areas. Many residents had to seek shelter as the storm menaced the area.
“The only thing I have left is what I’m wearing,” 35-year-old construction worker Carlos González told the AP. “I knew my house wasn’t going to stand it because it’s made of cardboard. When the wind came, I was really scared and decided to leave.” González told the AP that he, along with his wife and 1 1/2-year-old son, had to navigate the dark streets of Tulum with only the flashlight on his cell phone.
At least 180,000 lost electricity across the Yucatan Peninsula on Thursday, local media reported.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Hurricane
8 dead, 3 missing after Hurricane Grace made second landfall
By Ryan Adamson, AccuWeather meteorologist & Adam Douty, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Aug 21, 2021 5:26 PM EDT
Grace brought heavy rain and powerful winds to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula as it made landfall on Aug. 19, before moving back over the Gulf of Mexico.
Following Grace's first landfall in Mexico as a Category 1 hurricane along the eastern Yucatán Peninsula on Thursday, the storm turned deadly on Saturday as it pushed ashore for the second time.
Hurricane Grace made landfall near Tecolutla, Mexico, just before 1 a.m. CDT Saturday. At the time, Grace had sustained winds of 125 mph (200 km/h) and was a strong Category 3 hurricane. If the storm had managed to gain just 5 mph (8 km/h) of additional wind speed, it would have entered Category 4 hurricane territory.
At least eight people, including children, lost their lives and three people were reported missing after mudslides and flooding from Grace, Cuitláhuac Garía, governor of Mexico's Veracruz state where the storm made landfall, said during a press conference on Saturday. Another 33,000 people lost power during the storm, The Associated Press reported.
Grace has been rated as a 3 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes, due to the heavy rainfall, strong wind gusts and storm surge that can create flash flooding, structural damage and power outages.
Although the storm had lost some wind intensity while crossing the Yucatán Peninsula on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Friday morning that Air Force hurricane hunters had found that Grace developed into a hurricane once again over the Bay of Campache. It soon became the first Category 2 hurricane of the Atlantic hurricane season. But the storm wasn't finished growing.
From 11 p.m. EDT Thursday to 11 p.m. EDT Friday, Grace's maximum sustained winds had burst from 65 mph to 120 mph, undergoing a process known as rapid intensification. The qualifications of this process require a storm's maximum sustained winds to grow by over 30 knots (about 35 mph) over a 24-hour span of time.
Grace had intensified into Category 3 major hurricane while just hours away from its second landfall. A hurricane receives the "major" designation at Category 3 or above.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Damaging wind gusts of 40-60 mph (115-145 km/h) are possible near where Grace continues to push inland, following landfall in the first hour of Saturday morning with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 140 mph (225 km/h). This can lead to widespread power outages that may last for several days, along with downed trees and some structural damage.
Heavy rain of 8-12 inches (200-300 mm) can lead to widespread flooding along Grace's track. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ rainfall of 20 inches (500 mm) can cause mudslides in the mountains just inland. Central Veracruz into Puebla, Tlaxcala and Hidalgo will be at the greatest risk for excessive rainfall.
The heaviest rain from Grace is most likely along and to the east of the Sierra Oriental Mountains.
As Grace crosses central Mexico, it can bring a round of heavy rainfall to Mexico City and the surrounding area with 1-2 inches (25-50 mm) possible into Saturday. This can lead to travel disruptions and ponding water in low-lying areas.
While moving westward across Mexico, Grace began to rapidly lose wind intensity, dropping to a tropical storm late Saturday morning and becoming a tropical rainstorm later in the evening. However, it is becoming increasingly likely that what is left of the circulation will reemerge in the eastern Pacific by Sunday night.
A home damaged by winds brought on by Hurricane Grace sits askew near the shore, in Tecolutla, Veracruz State, Mexico, Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021. Grace hit Mexico’s Gulf shore as a major Category 3 storm before weakening on Saturday, drenching coastal and inland areas in its second landfall in the country in two days. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
"The remaining circulation center of Grace will reach the southwestern coast of Mexico late Sunday or Sunday night and move over the East Pacific," explained AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Kottlowski. "It's possible this system could attempt to re-develop into a tropical depression and even a tropical storm in the East Pacific early next week as it moves due west."
If the storm does redevelop on the Pacific side, it will acquire the next name on the Pacific list, which is Marty.
Additional impacts to Mexico seem unlikely once what is left of Grace enters the Pacific, forecasters say. The system is expected to maintain a westward track away from land and into open waters.
Grace has already lashed parts of the Caribbean earlier this week, including areas in Haiti that took a hit from a major earthquake last weekend.
Torrential rains from Grace fell over portions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic Monday night. Grace's stormy conditions hampered rescue and recovery efforts from the enormous temblor. Officials say the earthquake killed over 1,900 people, injured 6,900 others and destroyed thousands of homes.
As a tropical storm and tropical depression, Grace plowed through the Caribbean with gusty winds and heavy rainfall. The storm unleashed 13.6 inches of rain on Kingston, Jamaica, in just 24 hours.
During Grace's first landfall in Mexico, wind gusts as high as 85 mph (137 km/h) were reported near Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, as Grace came ashore on Thursday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center. The resort town of Cancun recorded a sustained wind of 59 mph (95 km/h) and gusts to 80 mph (130 km/h).
Winds of 80-90 mph (130-145 km/h) caused widespread power outages and even some structural damage over parts of the Yucatan Peninsula and on the island of Cozumel.
Locals remove debris from their homes after the passage of Hurricane Grace, in Tulum, Quintana Roo state, Mexico, on Thursday, August 19, 2021. The Category 1 storm made landfall at 4:45 am, just south of the ancient Mayan temples of Tulum, hitting the Caribbean coast with heavy rain and causing a dangerous storm surge. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)
These winds downed tree branches and power lines in Playa del Carmen, just north of where Grace made landfall, according to The Associated Press. Roofs were also ripped off homes in some areas. Many residents had to seek shelter as the storm menaced the area.
“The only thing I have left is what I’m wearing,” 35-year-old construction worker Carlos González told the AP. “I knew my house wasn’t going to stand it because it’s made of cardboard. When the wind came, I was really scared and decided to leave.” González told the AP that he, along with his wife and 1 1/2-year-old son, had to navigate the dark streets of Tulum with only the flashlight on his cell phone.
At least 180,000 lost electricity across the Yucatan Peninsula on Thursday, local media reported.
See ALSO:
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo