Hurricane Ernesto heads for Yucatan landfall

CANCUN, Mexico?? Tropical Storm Ernesto was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane Tuesday as it doused Honduras and Belize and closed in on the southern Yucatan peninsula later in the evening.

Authorities from the Mexican state of Quintana Roo ordered the evacuation of some 1,500 people in the southern portion of the state, known for its scuba diving and eco-tourism attractions.

Heavy rains showered Chetumal throughout the afternoon, filling much of the downtown with puddles of water up to six inches deep.

Chetumal's working class neighborhood of Lazaro Cardenas was flooded with water, but many residents said they preferred to stay in their cinder block and wood homes.

"This is normal. It is not the first time that a hurricane has come through here," said Carmen Salis, 19, standing outside her house.

Ernesto is predicted to hit the Mexican coast north of Chetumal later Tuesday night.

While the eye of Ernesto is not expected to hit the region's major resort of Cancun, some rain has started to fall in the area, which is packed with local and international visitors this time of the year.

Cancun, some 230 miles to the north of the storm's forecast path, was devastated in 2005 by Hurricane Wilma, the most intense storm ever recorded in the Atlantic.

The second hurricane of the 2012 Atlantic season, Ernesto had top sustained winds of 85 miles per hour and was 65 miles east of Chetumal, Mexico,the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said in its 8:00 p.m. advisory.

One cruise ship that was due to dock at the resort island of Cozumel on Wednesday had canceled its visit and another was diverted to Veracruz, in the Gulf of Mexico.

Heavy rain hit northern Honduras early Tuesday but there were no reports of damage.

Big ships were conducting business as usual on Honduras' main Atlantic ports although authorities restricted fishing for small boats.

Forecasters expect Ernesto to move into the southern part of the Gulf of Mexico by Wednesday afternoon or evening, but it was too early to know if it could disrupt oil and gas operations in the gulf.

Rainfall of four to eight inches, and possibly 12 inches in some areas, were expected over Belize and the southern portions of the Yucatan peninsula.

In the past, swollen rivers have swept away houses, livestock and people and set off landslides in the area. In a landslide last year, 31 people were buried in the Chiapas town of Juan del Grijalva.

Tabasco authorities also were taking preventive measures along the state's Gulf of Mexico coast, Civil Protection director Roberto Lopez said. He said authorities were recommending residents stay indoors and listen for emergency announcements issued by authorities.

Tabasco is a low-lying state that often floods. In 2007, heavy rains caused widespread flooding that left 1 million homes underwater and killed 33 people.

Far out in the Atlantic, Tropical Storm Florence weakened to a tropical depression Monday and then dissipated, the hurricane center said.

August and September are usually the most active months of the Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.

Chris was the first hurricane of the 2012 Atlantic season, but it lasted just a few hours on June 21 and never made landfall as it spun far off the East Coast.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48547729/ns/weather/

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