Ida strengthens to Category 2 hurricane; affecting tourists in Cancun and Cozumel

November 8, 2:43 PMDallas Tropical Travel ExaminerDebbra Brouillette

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Tourists who traveled to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula - Cancun, Cozumel, and Playa del Carmen - or to a lesser extent, the Cayman Islands, have had their vacations dampened by Hurricane Ida, but for residents of the small Central American country of El Salvador, the storm has had devastating impact. 

After strengthening to become a Category 1 hurricane late Sunday, the heavy rains, flooding and mudslides brought by the storm have tragically killed 124 people there.

The brunt of the storm has already passed Cozumel and Cancun, where warnings have been downgraded to tropical storm status, but Ida has strengthened to Category 2, as it now is centered about 100 miles north/northeast of Cozumel. Storm surge could still raise water levels there by three to four feet along the Yucatan coast, accompanied by large, destructive waves, so tourists will most likely have to hunker down and avoid all watersports. The main reason many travel to Cozumel is for scuba diving.

No travel warnings or changes of plans have been announced on the major cruise lines' websites.

Ida is expected to weaken by later Sunday afternoon and be near the northern Gulf Coast of the U.S. by Tuesday. That's when forecasters expect the storm to continue weakening, but could still reach the Florida Panhandle at hurricane strength.  Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the border between the states of Mississippi and Alabama. is also included in the watch area, but the city of New Orleans is not.

With hurricanes, all things are subject to change, so let's hope Ida fades away, perhaps leaving U.S. coastal residents wet but not battered.

You may be interested in reading these hurricane-related articles: Hurricanes 101: How are hurricanes categorized? and Hurricane Facts: How much do you know?

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