Storm Alex was downgraded to a tropical depression as it moved over the Yucatan Peninsula but was likely to regain strength over the Gulf of Mexico later last night, the US National Hurricane Centre said.
The storm was not an imminent threat to BP’s clean-up efforts, the US coast guard said.
The Mexican government yesterday closed Dos Bocas and Cayo Arcas, two of its main oil exporting ports on the Gulf of Mexico due to Alex.
“The forecast calls for Alex to regain tropical storm status by tonight . . . and for steady intensification through 72 hours,” the Miami-based centre said.