Hurricane Franklin has roared ashore on Mexico's central Gulf coast, threatening to pound a mountainous region prone to flash floods and mudslides with torrential rain and strong winds.
Franklin strengthened into the first hurricane of the Atlantic season on Wednesday and its landfall early on Thursday was its second on Mexican territory in three days. As a tropical storm, Franklin made a relatively mild run across the Yucatan Peninsula earlier in the week.
Authorities in Veracruz ordered classes cancelled at public schools as a precautionary measure. Schools are frequently used as storm shelters in Mexico.
The US National Hurricane Center said Franklin, a Category 1 storm, had maximum sustained winds of 140km/h. The storm is expected to weaken as it moves inland.
Franklin's centre was about 110km north-northwest of the city of Veracruz, and was heading west near 20km/h.
A hurricane warning was in effect for the coast from Veracruz city north to Cabo Rojo. A hurricane watch extended north from Cabo Rojo to Rio Panuco.
