Hurricane Patricia: Damage, But No Casualties Reported in Mexico

Sean Breslin
Published: October 25,2015

A day after record-breaking Hurricane Patricia made landfall in Mexico, early reports revealed thousands of homes had been damaged but no casualties in the state of Jalisco, where thousands of residents had hunkered down in shelters during the historic storm. Authorities cautioned that the remnants of the hurricane could still cause deadly flooding and mudslides.

Damage and flooding is seen in Manzanilla, Mexico after Hurricane Patricia.
(Katie and Herb Hunter/VisitLaManzanilla.com)

Packing sustained winds of 165 mph, Hurricane Patricia made landfall Friday around 6:15 p.m. near Cuixmala, Mexico, in the state of Jalisco, a sparsely populated stretch of Mexico's Pacific, avoiding direct hits on the resort city of Puerto Vallarta and major port city of Manzanillo.
Residents of towns nearest the strike described enduring a terrifying night.
"Those were the longest five hours of my life," said Sergio Reyna Ruiz, who took cover between the shaking concrete walls of a neighbor's home when Patricia passed over the hamlet of La Fortuna, about 2 miles (3 kilometers) from the ocean. "Five hours riding the monster. It's something to tell the grandchildren," Reyna said.
President Enrique Pena Nieto reported that between 3,000 and 3,500 homes had been damaged and the storm also affected 3,500 hectares (about 8,650 acres) of farmland, according to the Associated Press.
CNN reported Dr. Antonio Abad treated cuts from falling trees and roof debris on over two dozen patients, but that was the extent of the injuries he'd seen, much to his surprise. Elsewhere, more medical miracles surfaced, when it was reported a baby boy was born during the storm Friday night, and a baby girl was born during the storm early Saturday morning.
(RECAP: Historic Hurricane Patricia)
The extent of damage in Cuixmala, a resevere located between Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo with several luxury villas and casitas, is unknown at this time, as telephone lines are still down, Reuters reports.

Aerial view of the Manzanillo-Colima road in Colima State, Mexico on October 24, 2015 after the passage of hurricane Patricia.
(MARIO VAZQUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

El Universal reported that multiple homes were severely damaged and banana and papaya crop was  destroyed in Michoacan state. Mud and landslides closed several roads in the region. Some homes in Cuyultan, Colima, were flooded.Gov. Aristóteles Sandoval said that damage in the state of Jalisco was not irreperable and was limited to severe infrastructure damage, including blocked roads and damaged buildings, according to the New York Times.
Sandoval noted while it was a hopeful situation, residents needed to remain on alert.
President Enrique Peña Nieto announced Saturday afternoon security forces will patrol areas affected to ensure homes remain safe and urged residents to remain in shelters for safety precautions.
Landslides were reported on Federal Highway 200 in Jalisco, the State Unit of Civil Protection and Fire Jalisco told local media. Polls and trees were downed, and crews were surveying the area.

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Residents of the coast where Patricia came ashore described an enraged sea that crashed into hotels, scooping beach away from their foundations, and howling winds that toppled trees and telephone posts.

"The waves were coming into the hotel," said Domingo Hernandez, a watchman at the Hotel Barra de Navidad in the resort village of the same name in Jalisco state.
"All the streets here in town are full of downed trees all over the place," said Hernandez, who described Patricia as the strongest storm he's seen in a quarter century of living on the coast. "You have to make your way around all the downed telephone poles, the power lines, the trees."
Puerto Vallarta heaved a collective sigh of relief Saturday morning to find itself largely unscathed.
People snapped selfies next to a sculpture overlooking the sea and business owners swept sidewalks as they would on any morning. There were puddles downtown, but nothing more than a passing thunderstorm might leave.
The airports in Puerto Vallarta, Manzanillo and Tepic were closed Friday, but officials announced an air bridge Saturday to ferry stranded travelers out of areas hit by the storm. Officials said the bus station was reopening.

Residents and tourists had hunkered down in shelters and homes along a coastal stretch dotted with sleepy fishing villages and a few posh resorts that offer rooms for more than $1,000 a night.

The Sokols, a family of five from suburban Detroit, were supposed to fly out of Puerto Vallarta on Friday but ended up for hours in a shelter at a university after their flight was canceled. By night they were back where they began: at their hotel, and no worse for wear.

"It's amazing it went from the worst in history to just some heavy rain," Susanna Sokol said, noting that at least the hurricane gave her daughter a birthday to remember.

"It was pretty stressful for a while," Tom Sokol said. "I felt guilty for taking my kids here."
Verizon Communications Inc. has announced plans to help customers connect with family and friends in Mexico following the landfall of Hurricane Patricia. Wireless customers will incur no charges for texts or international long distance calls originating from the U.S. to Mexico from October 24 through October 30, 2015.
The remnants of Patricia now threaten Texas, where flooding already has caused a train derailment. Patricia's tropical moister will feed heavy rains already soaking the state.
– Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.