Tropical Storm Beatriz was a short-lived tropical storm that made

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

in the Mexican state of

Oaxaca Oaxaca, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca, is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of the Mexico, United Mexican States. It is divided into municipalities of Oaxaca, 570 munici ...

in June 2017. The second named storm of the

2017 Pacific hurricane season The 2017 Pacific hurricane season was an above average Pacific hurricane season in terms of named storms, though less active than the previous three, featuring eighteen named storms, nine hurricanes, and four major hurricanes. Despite the conside ...

, Beatriz developed from a tropical wave which had exited the coast of West

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

on May 18 and crossed

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, and was designated as Tropical Depression Two-E on May 31. Shortly after being upgraded to a tropical storm, Beatriz made landfall near Puerto Angel, Mexico on the evening of June 1. It subsequently weakened into a tropical depression as it moved ashore, dissipating quickly afterwards. Heavy rainfall from Beatriz caused flash flooding and mudslides in portions of Southwestern Mexico, resulting in seven fatalities. Along its path, Beatriz caused MXN$3.2 billion (US$172 million) in damage.

Meteorological history

The origins of Beatriz was first traced to a

tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...

which exited the coast of

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

on May 18. The wave moved westward through the Atlantic and Caribbean with minimal convection, though convection increased when the wave moved into the Eastern Pacific Ocean from

through May 25 and 26. A broad

area of low pressure In meteorology, a low-pressure area (LPA), low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. It is the opposite of a high-pressure area. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclem ...

developed from the wave about south-southeast of

Acapulco, Mexico Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , ; ), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Located on a deep, semicircular bay, Acapulco has been a port since the ear ...

. Over the next few days, the circulation of the low remained elongated, but favorable conditions allowed the system to develop organized convection. Early on May 31, the low was found better organized, leading the NHC to classify the disturbance as a tropical depression at 12:00 UTC on May 31 around southwest of Puerto Angel, Mexico. The depression moved slowly northeastward embedded within an area of deep southwesterly flow around a large mid to upper-level trough. In an environment defined by warm waters and light to moderate wind shear the depression was upgraded into Tropical Storm Beatriz while southwest of Puerto Angel at 18:00 UTC on June 1. Beatriz reached its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (75 km/h) and a minimum barometric pressure of 1002 mbar (hPa; 29.59 inHg) shortly before making landfall west of Puerto Angel that evening. Beatriz weakened to a tropical depression by 06:00 UTC on June 2 and quickly dissipated over the mountainous terrain of Mexico. The remnants of Beatriz still maintained some convection and moved into the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

where they failed to redevelop due to strong wind shear.

Preparations and impact

In preparation for Beatriz, the government of

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

issued a Tropical Storm Watch and eventually Warning from

Salina Cruz Salina Cruz is a major seaport on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the List of states of Mexico, Mexican state of Oaxaca. It is the state's fourth-largest city and is the municipal seat of the Municipalities of Oaxaca, municipality of the sa ...

to Puerto Escondido in

. The warning was discontinued by 06:00 UTC on June 2 as Beatriz moved inland. In Oaxaca, schools were closed until June 3 and flights out of Bahías de Huatulco International Airport were cancelled. According to local officials, Beatriz was responsible for six fatalities including two children and four women who were killed in mudslides in Oaxaca. News reports indicated that hundreds of mudslides occurred across Southwestern Mexico leaving dozens of roads impassible including sections of Federal Highway 200. A portion of the Oaxaca-Tehuantepec Highway was washed away and a bridge on the highway received some damage. Several rivers across the region overflowed their banks which affected homes in numerous communities. However, the rainfall brought much needed drought relief to the region filling a local reservoir to 70% capacity for the first time in two years.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beatriz 2017 Pacific hurricane season Eastern Pacific tropical storms June 2017 in Mexico Tropical cyclones in 2017 Hurricanes in Oaxaca

Meteorological history

Preparations and impact

See also

References

External links