First Atlantic hurricane wanes after lethal strike (Roundup)

Jul 1, 2010, 23:18 GMT

Washington - Residents along the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico breathed a sigh of relief Thursday as the season's first hurricane, Alex, dwindled to storm level after killing at least 14 people.

Alex's residual effects were still being felt in the wider region, as British oil giant BP was forced to suspend much of its ocean cleanup operations from the ruptured oil gusher off the coast of Louisiana.

Alex was downgraded to tropical storm level after pummelling the Texas and Mexico coasts as a category 2 hurricane. At its height late Wednesday and early Thursday, Alex swept ashore with winds of up to 170 kilometres per hour at Matamoros, Mexico, just south of the Rio Grande river border with Texas.

It destroyed homes, flooded streets and forced evacuations. In Mexico, an estimated 20,000 people needed to leave their homes. In Texas, it was 1,000. Two tornadoes escorted the hurricane across the region.

The victims in Mexico included three dead in Pie de la Cuesta, close to Acapulco, and one dead in the state of Oaxaca, Mexican television reported. Alex also killed five people in Nicaragua, three in El Salvador and two in Guatemala, the report said.

Alex stirred up rough waves across the Gulf of Mexico, where high seas continued to force the suspension of skimming and burning at the 10-week-old oil disaster site off the coast of Louisiana.

More than 500 ships deployed in the cleanup had to retreat to shore.

'We've been held hostage here for the last two days by the prevailing weather,' said Coast Guard Rear Admiral Paul Zukunft.