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Towns stranded, thousands homeless in wake of hurricane

By the CNN Wire Staff
Flooding from Hurricane Alex last week left 40,000 people homeless and 6 dead in the Mexican state of Nuevo Leon.
Flooding from Hurricane Alex last week left 40,000 people homeless and 6 dead in the Mexican state of Nuevo Leon.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • River rose because of water released from reservoir
  • Mayor says officials did not give residents ample warning about release
  • 40,000 residents in Nuevo Leon state remain homeless
RELATED TOPICS
  • Hurricane Alex
  • Mexico
  • Weather

(CNN) -- Communities in northeastern Mexico found themselves flooded and isolated Tuesday as Mexico's National Water Commission tried to manage high levels at area reservoirs due to Hurricane Alex.

Servando Lopez Moreno, mayor of Miguel Aleman, Mexico, said that the water commission released water from the nearby El Cuchillo reservoir without warning communities near the river, which flooded homes and crops, the state-run Notimex news agency reported.

Miguel Aleman is located in the state of Tamaulipas, near the border with Texas.

The mayor said his town was not affected directly by Hurricane Alex, but by the lack of coordination between reservoir managers and local officials.

He said that the communities of San Antonio de Reyna, Mexico, and Arcabuz, Mexico, faced flooded homes, ruined sorghum crops and disabled work equipment as well as lack of electricity and phone lines, Notimex reported.

There were no fatalities in the flooding, the mayor said. He asked for federal and state authorities to intervene to avoid future problems.

In the neighboring state of Nuevo Leon, the effects of Alex were more direct.

Some 40,000 Nuevo Leon residents were pushed out of their homes because of the storm, authorities said.

The state's ministry of health announced an emergency program that includes psychological attention to those affected, Notimex reported.

The head of the health department, Jesus Zacarias Villarreal, said the psychological services were for those people with anxiety, nervousness and depression as a result of the storm.

Alex stormed onshore as a Category 2 Hurricane on June 30, causing at least six deaths in Nuevo Leon.