Effects of Hurricane Wilma in Mexico

Hurricane Wilma

Wilma over the island of Cozumel on October 21
Category 4 major hurricane
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS)
Highest winds	150 mph (240 km/h)
Lowest pressure	927 mbar (hPa); 27.37 inHg
Overall effects
Fatalities	8 total
Damage	$442 million (2005 USD)
Areas affected	Yucatán Peninsula (especially Quintana Roo)
Part of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season
History Meteorological history Effects Mexico Florida The Bahamas Other wikis Commons: Wilma images

The effects of Hurricane Wilma in Mexico severely affected the tourism industry of the Yucatán Peninsula in mid October 2005. Hurricane Wilma developed on October 15 in the Caribbean. Four days later, it intensified into the strongest Atlantic hurricane on record as determined by barometric pressure. Wilma weakened as it moved slowly northwestward, eventually making landfall late on October 21 on the island of Cozumel. At the time, it was a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale. Early the next day, the hurricane made another landfall on the Mexican mainland near Puerto Morelos. Wilma exited the Yucatán Peninsula into the Gulf of Mexico on October 23, and a day later it struck Florida.

The large and powerful hurricane dropped torrential rainfall across the northeastern Yucatán Peninsula and on offshore islands. Over a 24-hour period, Wilma produced 1,633.98 mm (64.330 in) of rainfall, the greatest 24-hour accumulation ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere. Parts of the Yucatán Peninsula experienced tropical storm-force winds for nearly 50 hours. An anemometer recorded a reading of 212 km/h (132 mph) before the instrument failed. The hurricane moved ashore with an estimated 4.6 m (15 ft) storm surge, accompanied by 5 to 8 m (16 to 26 ft) waves which reached the third stories of some buildings. Wilma severely eroded the beaches of eastern Quintana Roo and caused flooding in neighboring Yucatán.

Wilma contributed to eight deaths in Mexico – seven in Quintana Roo and one in Yucatán. Hurricane Wilma directly inflicted about $4.8 billion (MXN, US$442 million)^{[nb 1]} worth of damage, mostly in Quintana Roo. It was the state's costliest natural disaster. Much of the damage was done to tourism sectors of Cancún and other nearby resort areas. The hurricane's indirect costs were significantly higher due to its disruption of tourism revenue, estimated at $13.9 billion (US$1.3 billion). About 98% of the lodging and resorts in Quintana Roo were damaged, including 110 hotels damaged or destroyed in Cancún. Nationwide, Wilma destroyed 9,463 houses and caused damage to 19,517 others. In Cancún alone, the hurricane left 300,000 people homeless.

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