The governor of the state of Quintana Roo has issued an orange alert for the entire state. This means that it is likely that there will be a hurricane strike within 24 hours. At this point it appears that Hurricane Dean will be landing in the southern portion of the state, near Tulum and the surrounding areas. The next update is expected around 3 o’clock local time.

Schools for the state will be closed on Monday. The Cancun and Cozumel airports are continuing operation at this time, all departing flights are reportedly full and more empty planes are expected to arrive to ferry out the tourists. The shelters are 100% ready to receive those displaced by the storm. Tourists that can not get a plane will be protected by the government. The Red Cross is prepared to bring any necessary assistance to the area. Three hundred federal police officers are expected to arrive tomorrow to assist in protection efforts. Tourists in hotels are not yet being evacuated, they will await further instructions. Travel agencies are being requested NOT to send any tourists to the area.

posted by CancunCanuck

Diario de Yucatán domingo 19 de agosto a 09:58 am

Decretan la alerta naranja para Quintana Roo

9:58 a.m.
Hoy a las 9:40 de la mañana el Comité Especializado contra Huracanes de Quintana Roo, que preside el gobernador Félix González Canto, decretó la alerta naranja para todo el estado, ante la proximidad de “Dean”.

En el transcurso de hoy aumentaron las probabilidades de impacto para el centro de Quintana Roo, informaron al realizar un recorrido por la zona maya del estado, donde verificaron los preparativos en los albergues, ante el inminente impacto del meteoro.

El centro del estado de Quintana Roo se encuentran las poblaciones más pobres, como la zona de los “chunes”, donde habitan 500 familias -un total aproximado de 2 mil personas- que ya fueron desalojadas ante el peligro de que se vengan abajo sus endebles edificaciones. También ya fueron desalojados el banco Chinchorro, la isla Holbox y la isla Contoy (Luis Espadas, CEM)

posted by CancunCanuck

The people of Jamaica are preparing for a direct hit from Hurricane Dean today. Authorities have warned people to take cover and have converted churches, schools and sports centers into shelters in advance of the expected 240 km/h winds. The electric company will shut off power to the island at 10 am local time. This could be a devastating storm for the island as Dean approaches at a category 4.

You can listen live to radio stations in Jamaica at the following sites, though I have had some trouble loading them, you can give them a try.

http://www.go-jamaica.com/power/

http://www.rjr94fm.com/

http://www.megajamz.com/

Our thoughts are with the people of Jamaica. We are fairly relaxed this morning in our house. We know that Hurricane Dean’s trajectory will be affected by crossing over Jamaica, we are hoping that he gets sent out to sea, though it doesn’t seem likely. At the moment it appears that the southern part of Quintana Roo near Tulum will be more strongly affected than Cancun, but I am not going to count on that yet. We are still preparing for Dean’s arrival, direct hit or just a brush, we are sure to get a lot of wind and rain.

posted by CancunCanuck