Hurricane Bridget of June 1971 was one of the worst hurricanes to strike the Mexican city of

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has bee ...

. It formed on June 14 as a tropical depression, which is a minimal

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

with winds less than

gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ).tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...

that exited the coast of Africa on June 3. Around four days later the system entered the Caribbean Sea, passing over the San Andres islands on June 12. The area of

convection Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convec ...

, or thunderstorms, spread across

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. A surface circulation developed offshore

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

, and the system formed into a tropical depression on June 14. For much of the summer of 1971, a large pool of anomalously warm water temperatures extended from

to the

Gulf of California The Gulf of California ( es, Golfo de California), also known as the Sea of Cortés (''Mar de Cortés'') or Sea of Cortez, or less commonly as the Vermilion Sea (''Mar Bermejo''), is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean that separates the Baja Ca ...

off the Mexican coast, reaching 89.6 °F (32 °C). This allowed for steady intensification as it tracked through the

Gulf of Tehuantepec Gulf of Tehuantepec () is a large body of water on the Pacific coast of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, southeastern Mexico, at . Many (but not all) Pacific hurricanes form in or near this body of water. A strong, gale-force wind called the Tehuan ...

. Early on June 15, a ship reported winds of 40 mph (65 km/h) and seas, which prompted the

Eastern Pacific Hurricane Center The Eastern Pacific Hurricane Center was formerly the center responsible for forecasting Pacific hurricanes in the eastern north Pacific east of 140°W. It was part of the Weather Bureau Forecast Office San Francisco and was based in Redwood City. ...

(EPHC) to upgrade the depression to Tropical Storm Bridget. The storm maintained a general northwest track toward the southwest Mexican coastline. It gradually intensified, and satellite images late on June 16 indicated that Bridget attained hurricane status about 55 mi (95 km) southwest of

Puerto Ángel Puerto Ángel (English: "Angel Port").Is a small coastal town in the Mexican state of Oaxaca located in the municipality of San Pedro Pochutla. It, along with San Agustinillo and Playa Zipolite are known as the "Riviera Oaxaqueña". It is located ...

Oaxaca Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of Mexico. It is ...

. It quickly intensified as it neared the coast, reaching winds of 100 mph (155 km/h) just southwest of

coastline before weakening. Bridget paralleled the Mexican coastline just offshore before making

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

at 1200 UTC on June 17, about 100 mi (160 km) southeast of Manzanillo,

Colima Colima (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Colima), is one of the 31 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and ...

. The hurricane rapidly weakened over the mountainous terrain, emerging into the Pacific Ocean as a tropical depression after being over land for only a few hours. Bridget turned westward as a weak tropical cyclone, eventually dissipating on June 20 to the south of the Baja California peninsula.

Preparations and impact

While passing to the southwest of Acapulco, Bridget produced heavy rainfall and strong wind gusts reaching 104 mph (167 km/h). The winds damaged or destroyed many roofs across Acapulco, signs, and windows. Strong winds also downed trees and power lines, which left most of Acapulco without electricity. Along the coast, the hurricane produced high tides and waves which flooded low-lying coastal areas with around of water. The high tides damaged coastal properties and destroyed 21 boats, including the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

of the

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

of the

Mexican Navy The Mexican Navy is one of the two independent armed forces of Mexico. The actual naval forces are called the ''Armada de México''. The ''Secretaría de Marina'' (''SEMAR'') (English: Naval Secretariat) includes both the ''Armada'' itself and ...

. Debris-clogged drains caused drainage facilities to exceed their capacities following the heavy rainfall. Overall, the storm killed 17 people in the region, and caused five additional injuries. Damage in the area around Acapulco was estimated at 500 million

pesos The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named "dollar" ...

($40 million

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

). This made it the worst hurricane to hit the city in at least 25 years. Where Bridget made its final landfall, no damage reports were available due to the sparse population of the area.

References

{{1971 Pacific hurricane season buttons Bridget (1971)

Bridget Bridget is an Irish language, Irish female name derived from the Goidelic languages, Gaelic noun ''brígh'', meaning "power, strength, vigor, virtue". An alternate meaning of the name is "exalted one". Its popularity, especially in Ireland, is la ...

Bridget (1971)

Preparations and impact

See also

References