Alex, now a depression, moves into Gulf of Mexico; could become hurricane

Alex, first named Atlantic storm, moves into Gulf

BELIZE CITY — Tropical Storm Alex moved into the Gulf of Mexico Sunday after weakening to a depression as it swirled across Belize and Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, dumping rains that left at least four people dead across the region.

Alex is expected to regain strength in the coming days as it moves over warmer waters in the Gulf and possibly become a hurricane headed toward Mexico’s eastern coast, well away from the area where BP PLC is trying to stop a massive oil leak, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.

On Sunday, Alex soaked parts of Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula with torrential downpours, forcing hundreds of tourists to flee resort islands. Winds were at 60 mph (95 kph) when the storm made landfall in Belize on Saturday night but had decreased to 35 mph (55 kph) by Sunday.

The hurricane center said Alex is expected to become a tropical storm again on Monday. Rains will likely keep falling on southern Mexico and Guatemala until Monday afternoon.

The heavy rains prompted a landslide in northwestern Guatemala that dislodged a large rock outcropping, killing two men who had taken shelter from the storm underneath, according to the national disaster-response agency.

In El Salvador, Civil Protection chief Jorge Melendez said two people were swept away by rivers that jumped their banks. About 500 people were evacuated from their homes.

Authorities in both Guatemala and Belize were keeping an eye on rising river levels. One bridge in western Belize was swamped entirely, cutting off a remote Mennonite community. Seven homes in the Belize River Valley, outside Belize City, had their roofs blown off, and at least one structure collapsed.

Belize officials opened storm shelters in the island tourist resort of San Pedro, as 1,400 people fled for the mainland by plane and by boat.

But the country apparently avoided major damage, and emergency coordinator Noreen Fairweather said on national radio that there were no reports of injuries. People who took refuge in storm shelters were returning home.

“The weather came, but it was just normal rain, little gusts of wind and nothing much,” Belize City resident Miguel Chan told APTN. “We have had normal storms that were more heavier than this.”

There were no immediate reports of damage to Mexico’s resort-studded Caribbean coast, which includes popular beach destinations such as Cancun, Cozumel and Playa del Carmen.

Now all eyes are on the Gulf of Mexico.

When Alex became the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, officials immediately worried what effect it could have on efforts to contain the millions of gallons of crude spewing into the Gulf.

A cap has been placed over the blown-out undersea well, directing some of the oil to a surface ship where it is being collected or burned. Other ships are drilling two relief wells, projected to be done by August, which are considered the best hope to stop the leak.

For the time being, the storm appears likely to miss the oil-slicked region and make landfall in Mexico, apparently in Tamaulipas state — but meteorologists warned that a storm’s track can quickly change.

Alex was centered about 55 miles (90 kilometers) south-southwest of Campeche, Mexico, on Sunday afternoon. It was moving toward the west-northwest near 9 mph (15 kph).

Meanwhile in the Pacific, once-powerful hurricanes Celia and Darby weakened to tropical storms and did not pose a threat to land.

Associated Press writer Gabriel Alcocer in Cancun, Mexico, contributed to this report.