Hurricane Emily

Landfall | Summary
Posting Date: July 20, 2005, 7:00:00 AM

Hurricane Emily rolled ashore on Mexico’s northeastern coast early Wednesday morning, about 75 miles south of the U.S. border. Making landfall as a Category 3 hurricane with 125 mph winds, Emily forced 17,000 residents from their homes in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. Many of the homes commonly constructed of corrugated steel along the coast sustained damage at the hands of the storm’s strong winds as well as subsequent flooding from Emily’s torrential rains. Emily downed power lines and uprooted trees in her westward track into Mexico’s mountainous region. In Texas, the southern shores saw large battering waves pounding the coast, accompanied by strong gusts of wind, though generally minimal damage to structures and property. As a precaution, campers were evacuated from South Padre Island and residents there stacked sandbags in preparation for possible floodwaters. As of 9 a.m. EDT, Emily was located about 30 miles inland of the northeastern Mexican coast, about 75 miles south-southwest of Brownsville, Texas. The storm is moving west at around 10 mph and maximum sustained winds are still around 125 mph. Hurricane force winds extend out up to 70 miles from the center, and tropical storm force winds extend out up to 160 miles. The estimated minimum central pressure is 945 mb. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) expects Emily to gradually weaken this morning and weaken more rapidly tonight and tomorrow. 5 to 10 inches of rain is likely over northeastern Mexico with isolated mountainous areas receiving up to 15 inches. Rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches are expected across the southernmost portions of Texas, where the NHC also warns that tornadoes could form throughout the day. Although Emily made landfall as a major hurricane, damage to property in the U.S. was not significant due to the storm’s track well to the south of the U.S. border. The AIR tropical cyclone team has run simulations for the U.S. using the latest available meteorological information and results indicate that insured losses will be minimal.

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Posting Date: July 20, 2005, 7:00:00 AM