Hurricane Keith

Hurricane Keith

Hurricane Keith was a powerful tropical cyclone. It formed in September 2000 and was the fifteenth tropical cyclone of the 2000 Atlantic hurricane season.

Keith started as a tropical wave in the western Caribbean Sea on September 28. It grew stronger, becoming Tropical Storm Keith on September 29, and then a hurricane on September 30. The storm reached its peak as a Category 4 hurricane before it weakened near Belize.

The hurricane brought heavy rain to many places, causing flooding. In Belize, many homes were destroyed or damaged. In Mexico, flooding caused damage to many houses. Hurricane Keith caused damage worth about $319 million.

Meteorological history

On September 16, 2000, a tropical wave left the west coast of Africa and moved westward across the Atlantic Ocean. It crossed the Caribbean Sea and began to organize on September 27. The next day, it became a tropical depression and was named Tropical Storm Keith later that day.

Keith quickly grew stronger, becoming a hurricane on September 30. It reached its peak strength on October 1 with winds of 140 mph, making it a Category 4 hurricane. Keith moved slowly near Belize before weakening and moving over the Yucatán Peninsula. It regained some strength in the Bay of Campeche before making its final landfall near Tampico, Mexico, and dissipating on October 6.

Preparations

When Hurricane Keith formed, warnings were issued for the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, from Chetumal to Cabo Catoche. As the storm grew stronger, new warnings were added for the coast of Belize. The government of Belize declared an emergency and prepared its defence forces. Airports closed, and thousands of people moved to safe shelters.

In Quintana Roo, many people were evacuated to shelters. Some fishermen chose to stay on a coral reef during the storm. In Mexico, ports closed, schools shut down, and more people moved to safety as the storm moved closer.

Impact

Hurricane Keith moved slowly and unpredictably, bringing strong winds and heavy rain to Central America. Belize felt the worst of the storm, with serious damage and some deaths mostly from flooding. Other countries like El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua also reported serious flooding. In total, Keith caused many deaths and damage.

Belize

Even though Keith stayed away from the coast, winds blew water out of the Bay of Chetumal. At Caye Caulker, the hurricane created a storm surge. Winds were strong on offshore islands, and gusts reached high speeds at Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport. Because Keith moved slowly, it dropped a lot of rain, with over 10 inches in many areas. The most rain fell at the international airport in Belize City.

Strong winds destroyed houses in Belize. Two hotel roofs were damaged, and trees and power lines came down. Many areas lost power and telephone service, including Belize City. Heavy rain flooded streets there. Twenty homes were damaged in the capital, and many more had minor roof damage. The rain also flooded the first floor of the main hospital. Nationwide, health facilities were damaged. Rivers rose very high due to the rain. Flooding covered highways and a main bridge, and water stayed high for days. Floods ruined water supplies, causing health problems.

Damage was worst on offshore islands and in northern mainland areas. On the islands, trees and power lines blocked roads. In Caye Caulker and San Pedro, many houses lost their roofs, and many houses were damaged or destroyed, leaving people without homes. On Ambergris Caye, four airplanes were destroyed. At Turneffe Atoll, many trees were uprooted.

Five people died in accidents involving boats. There was also an accident with a bus, killing four people. Three people died on Ambergris Caye. In total, many people died in Belize. Many people were hurt by flying debris, and many were injured overall. Many homes were damaged or destroyed. The damage was first estimated at a large amount, and later, the total damage was even larger.

Mexico

Hurricane Keith caused damage in three Mexican states: Quintana Roo on the Yucatán Peninsula, Tamaulipas where the hurricane came ashore, and Sonora farther inland. In Quintana Roo, Keith caused damage and indirect costs. While crossing the Yucatán Peninsula, Keith dropped heavy rain, including over 10 inches in Campeche state. Chetumal, Quintana Roo, reported rain.

When Keith came ashore near Tampico, it reported winds with gusts up to 63 mph. The winds damaged billboards and trees in the city and knocked down trees and power lines along the coast. About 200,000 people in northeastern Mexico lost power, and 100,000 people were left without water. About 400 houses were damaged in Veracruz, and many roads and bridges were destroyed. Heavy rain fell in northeastern Mexico’s interior, with a maximum of rain in González, Tamaulipas. In Gómez Farías, a rain station recorded rain in one day and rain for the entire storm. This rain caused rivers to reach record levels. The Sabinas River rose nearly 36 feet, and the Guayalejo River rose almost 24 feet.

In Nuevo León, the remains of Keith combined with a cold front to bring heavy rain, reaching rain in Sabinas. The average rain in the state was 5 inches, causing mudslides in several cities. Heavy rain also caused flash floods in areas near Monterrey. About 13,000 people lost power. About 5,000 people had to leave their homes in several areas of the state, including from Monterrey and from rural areas. The total damage in the state reached a large amount, with most of it from fixing urban infrastructure, especially in San Pedro Garza García. About 460 homes were damaged or destroyed, and families had to move to safer places.

In other states, damage was lighter but still noticeable. In Sonora, total damage reached a large amount. In Chiapas, property damage occurred. This brought the total damage in Mexico to a large amount. In Tabasco, flooding damaged houses. About people in the state were affected by flooding. In the capital city of Villahermosa, rivers overflowed and flooded some streets, but dikes and sandbags stopped more flooding. Overall, about people in Mexico had to leave their homes because of the storm and flooding. There was one death when a man in Tampico was electrocuted by a fallen power line. In Xicoténcatl, Tamaulipas, a swollen river killed a family of six when their house flooded. Overall, Keith caused deaths in Mexico. There were six additional deaths when a plane crashed while trying to land in Reynosa, Tamaulipas.

Elsewhere

The outer edges of Keith brought occasional rain to several parts of Cuba, but the amounts were very small. While Keith was forming, it pulled moisture from the eastern Pacific Ocean across Central America, causing heavy rain. In Guatemala, the rain caused flooding in towns and covered farms in the Melchor de Mencos area with water. One death was reported. In El Salvador, a man drowned in a river, and families had to leave after several houses were damaged or destroyed. Rain in Honduras forced families to leave their homes. One person died when a wall collapsed, and there were five more deaths when an airplane disappeared near Roatan Island. A bridge on the Pan-American Highway between Honduras and Nicaragua was destroyed.

In Nicaragua, floods from the storm forced people to leave their homes for shelters, many of which were schools. Floods affected departments of Nicaragua, and the waters began to go down as Keith moved away. The floods caused landslides and covered roads, isolating communities. Keith damaged houses in the country and destroyed another. There were deaths due to the storm in Nicaragua, including a boy who was swept away by a fast-moving flooded river and a man who drowned in Lake Managua. A man died after stepping on a power line that had fallen due to strong winds. Fifty communities were isolated, with at least thirteen of them because roads were impassable. Several neighborhoods in Corinto flooded, forcing the Civil Defense to evacuate families. One house collapsed in Los Ángeles, but its people inside were safe. After rain fell in Villanueva, Chinandega, flooding forced families to leave, and there were big losses to crops. An additional families left their homes because of flooding in Poneloya. About families in the port city of Puerto Sandino were evacuated after a river overflowed. Another homes were flooded in the Salinas Grandes area. About people left Troilo after at least homes were flooded.

Aftermath

See also: List of retired Atlantic hurricane names

After Hurricane Keith, leaders in Belize asked the world for help. The United Nations gave money, and groups like the Red Cross and the United States Navy brought supplies. Many people worked together to send food, water, and other important items to families in need.

Officials in Belize made rules to keep things safe and to help clean up. They sent planes with supplies to islands that were hard to reach. Workers fixed roads, restored power, and got airports running again quickly. Even though the storm caused damage, people helped each other to recover. Because Hurricane Keith was so powerful, its name was retired and will not be used again for future storms.