Third time lucky for Mexico resort as storm misses
Source: Reuters
(Adds one dead, details of missing tourist) By Frank Jack Daniel LOS CABOS, Mexico, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The Mexican beach resort of Los Cabos escaped serious damage from a cyclone for the third time in two months on Wednesday when Tropical Storm Paul skirted it and blew toward the mainland. Rescuers working in the rain evacuated more than 1,500 people on Tuesday night from shantytowns near the Baja California resort. High waves killed a Mexican fisherman and swept away a U.S. tourist, who is presumed dead. The storm, at one point a moderate Category 2 hurricane, lost strength and changed direction, moving away from Los Cabos. The resort is made up of the towns of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. American tourists sipped rum with their breakfast at one sunny hotel terrace. Bartender Antonio Lemus was awed at the area's good fortune of barely escaping a triplet of powerful storms this hurricane season. "Three times we were on the verge, and at the last minute they dissipated or swerved," he said. "They're saying around here the hand of God touched Cabo San Lucas." Last month, Hurricane Lane threatened Los Cabos before dodging the region and carrying fierce winds and rain into the western state of Sinaloa. Two weeks earlier, Hurricane John, with winds of 115 mph (185 kph), barreled toward the tip of Baja California and sent hundreds of tourists fleeing to the airport before it lost strength and veered to the northeast, instead hitting state capital La Paz and killing at least three people. LASHING RAIN The edge of the latest storm lashed Los Cabos with rain and winds on Tuesday night. Die-hard vacationers waded through calf-deep rainwater clutching plastic beer cups to reach nightspots like the Cabo Wabo bar, which were buzzing despite the weather. Police banged on flimsy doors in poor neighborhoods in danger of being flooded to evacuate the most vulnerable. Women clutching toddlers and small bundles of basic possessions ran to buses that carried them to schools converted into makeshift shelters. John Bryan Skoor, a 65-year-old from Washington state, was swept off a beach at Los Cabos by a wave and is presumed dead, a U.S. consulate official said. A Mexican fisherman was also killed in the storm, state officials told Reuters. By Wednesday morning, Paul had passed east of the Baja California peninsula and headed across the Sea of Cortez toward the coast, where it was expected to strike the farming state of Sinaloa. Paul's winds reached 45 mph (75 kph). A tropical storm warning was in effect for Sinaloa on the western mainland, where three people were killed by Lane last month. "This general motion is expected to continue during the next 24 hours taking the center of Paul into mainland Mexico within the warning area later today," the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said. Damage to tomatoes, one of Sinaloa's main farming products and a staple in Mexican cuisine, led to a shortage after Lane hit in September, causing a spike in the country's inflation.
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