"You've been a very naughty peninsula, haven't you?"
Emily slammed into Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula early Monday as a powerful Category 4 storm, bringing winds of 135 mph and punishing waves to the region's famous white-sand beaches. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Emily made landfall near Tulum - 100 miles south of Cancun. The northern eyewall - where the worst weather would be expected - passed directly over Cozumel, it said. Although the storm weakened to a Category 2 hurricane while crossing the peninsula, it was expected to gather strength again after hitting Gulf waters later Monday.
A hurricane watch was issued from Cabo Rojo, Mexico, to Baffin Bay, Texas. The brunt of the second landfall was forecast to hit northeast Mexico late Tuesday or early Wednesday. By 8 a.m. EDT, winds decreased to near 100 mph, with the hurricane moving west at about 17 mph. Emily was centered over the Yucatan, about 50 miles northeast of Merida. |