Hurricane Pauline

The origins of Hurricane Pauline were thought to have been spawned by a tropical wave, which moved off the coast of Africa into the tropical Atlantic Ocean on September 16, 1997. The wave subsequently moved across the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, before it moved across northern South America and entered the Pacific Ocean near Panama on September 26. At this time the system was located about to the southeast of Puerto Ángel, Mexico, and had started to move eastwards, as a result of a trough of low pressure over central America that had disrupted the normal steering currents. During that day, the system continued to develop with a banding feature wrapping more than halfway around the low-level circulation center, before the system intensified into a tropical storm and was named Pauline by the NHC on October 6. A strong high-pressure system eroded the trough over southeastern Mexico, which turned Pauline to the northeast. An eye feature developed late on October 6, and early on the next day Pauline intensified into a hurricane about southeast of Salina Cruz after turning to the north and northwest. ==Preparations==

Early forecasts underestimated the peak intensity of Pauline by . On October 7, about 41 hours before landfall, the government of Mexico issued a hurricane warning from Tapachula in Chiapas to Punta Maldonado in Guerrero. Shortly after Pauline made landfall, the warning was extended northwestward to Manzanillo, Colima, and later to Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco. Pauline's turn to the west-northwest near landfall was unexpected, resulting in hurricane conditions with only a few hours notice in some areas. The government ultimately closed six major ports between Acapulco and Puerto Madero. State authorities in Oaxaca opened 75 emergency shelters and prepared 50 schools to house 10,000 people. == Impact ==

Few surface observations were taken during the passage of the hurricane, though officials reported that southern Mexico experienced the brunt of the storm. Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, near where Pauline made landfall, reported a peak wind gust of several hours before the hurricane moved through the area; no reports were available after that time. An anemometer in Acapulco reported a wind gust of with sustained winds of . However, officials estimate Pauline might have been a hurricane while passing through the area. In Acapulco, the hurricane dropped of rainfall in 24 hours. This broke the city precipitation record set originally in 1974; the 1997 total represented about 25% of the city's annual rainfall. Seas of about were reported along the Oaxaca coastline while the hurricane made landfall. Throughout the country, Hurricane Pauline resulted in $447.8 million in damage (1997 USD). A report issued by the United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs reported 137 deaths three days after Hurricane Pauline. Four days after the passage of the hurricane, a Reuters news report stated there were 173 dead with about 200 missing, while the government of Mexico issued a statement reporting 149 deaths. Ultimately, media reports indicated a death toll of at least 230 people, and the Mexican Red Cross estimated 400 dead Relief Web suggests that 217 fatalities were reported and 600,000 people were impacted. Approximately 300,000 people were left homeless due to the storm. Environment The hurricane caused severe damage to the environment; of low-lying rainforest and pine and evergreen oak woodlands were greatly damaged in southern Mexico. Strong waves produced severe beach erosion in some locations. The erosion affected two nesting cycles for the olive ridley turtle, destroying about 40 million eggs. Nearly 806,000 nests were affected, and about 50% of these were wiped out. The deadliest and most intense hurricane to hit southern Mexico since 1959, the hurricane was the first documented hurricane strike on Pacific coral reefs. Crop damage was extreme, and 400,000 bags of coffee were lost. In the days after the hurricane, soybean and wheat prices increased. In all, Hurricane Pauline had a large effect on fauna in Southern Mexico. Abundant rainfall caused the River Los Perros to overflow its capacity, flooding 50 municipalities in Oaxaca. The flooding damaged 12 bridges, and cut off some areas of electricity, drinking water, and telecommunications for several days. At least 110 people died in the state, with hundreds of thousands of residents and 1,278 communities being affected. One environmental agency remarked that it will take 15 years for coffee crops to recover. According to one preliminary estimate, 123 people died in Guerrero, There, around 5,000 homes were destroyed with another 25,000 damaged, with 10,000 people left homeless in and around the city. The luxury resort hotels near the beach were largely unaffected by the hurricane, though residents in the shanty towns lost what little they had. Much of the city was covered in mud, and 70 percent of Acapulco was without water as a result of the hurricane. Most of the city's one million residents were left without power or telephone service. Overall, total damage was nearly $300 million pesos. ==Aftermath==

Volunteers from the Mexican Red Cross quickly went to disaster areas with search and rescue teams, Hotels were forced to use bottled water and ration their available water to as little as possible to provide water for the rest of the city. Extreme price gouging occurred in the city following the hurricane, with one consumer protection official reporting shopkeepers charging 200 percent more for milk, 500 percent more for tortillas, and 1000 percent more than usual for water. Government officials set up 39 aid centers for Acapulco citizens, though some residents were unable to get food and water. Some residents suspected than the president and his Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) of taking aid supplies for their own purposes. The president promised to seek charges and decided to close aid centers in favor of opening soup kitchens. Despite having the food, the Mexican army did not set up the kitchens, nor was aid distributed at the aid centers. Around ten days after the hurricane struck, 20,000 people were still isolated from emergency crews and relief works, causing the president to suspect people could begin starving to death. Helicopters were initially sent to the remote areas, though severe fog and heavy rainfall after the hurricane grounded the operations. The government worked to bring food to remote mountain communities, though officials noted the serious risk in doing so. Three days after the hurricane, the American Red Cross sent an initial donation of $25,000 (1997 USD), and also sent plastic sheets for temporary roofing and cleaning supplies such as mops, brooms, buckets, sponges, bleach, and cleaning chemicals. The German Red Cross also offered assistance. and at least six cases of dengue fever were reported. Most significantly, there were 14,630 cases of malaria in 616 villages in Oaxaca due to Pauline; this represented about 80% of the malaria cases in Mexico during 1998. Army soldiers distributed chlorine tablets to disinfect water pools and wheelbarrows to remove rotting mud and sewage from their damaged homes. Two C-130 Hercules planes and twenty helicopters airlifted food and water to smaller villages south of Acapulco that were stranded for nearly a week after the hurricane. Retirement Because of the high death tolls and the extent of damage in Mexico, the name Pauline was retired following the season by the World Meteorological Organization and will never again be used for a Pacific hurricane. It was replaced by Patricia for the 2003 season. ==See also==