MERIDA, Mexico (Reuters) - Hurricane Isidore plowed across Mexico's Yucatan peninsula on Monday, forcing thousands from their homes as it flooded streets, toppled trees and power lines and shut down offshore oil rigs. About 70,000 people in low-lying fishing villages on the peninsula were evacuated to shelters after torrential rains flooded homes and roads, and winds of more than 120 mph (195 kph) ripped off roofs and uprooted trees.
Local radio stations reported four road accident deaths during the storm, and Mexico's state oil monopoly, Pemex, evacuated more than 8,000 workers from its drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
The hurricane lost some force as it churned over land on Monday, with its winds decreasing to about 80 mph (125 kph), but was expected to gain power as it drifts west and heads over the Gulf. Forecasters said that later this week it could slam into Mexico's eastern coastline or head north toward Texas.
"Additional weakening is likely while (Isidore's) center remains over land," the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said on Monday. "But Isidore is expected to begin to restrengthen when it moves back over water."
At 2 a.m. EDT (0600 GMT), Isidore's center was about 20 miles southeast of Merida, Yucatan's state capital, and was drifting southwest at about 5 mph (8 kph).
Isidore was one of the strongest storms to hit the peninsula since 1988 when Hurricane Gilbert caused major damage in Cancun before heading north and killing dozens in the city of Monterrey.
The 16th-century colonial city of Merida, was battered with rains and winds. The city of 750,000 people and home of the oldest cathedral in the Americas, was ankle-deep in water, and huge trees were uprooted along Paseo de Montejo, a mansion-lined promenade near the city center.
Winds smashed the windows of homes and hotels and some areas suffered power blackouts.
In one Merida school operating as a shelter for 600 people, evacuees wrapped themselves in blankets and slept on floors, waiting for promised food supplies from the army.
In El Progreso, a port city of 45,000 people close to the western tip of the Yucatan peninsula, houses were knee-deep in water. Trees, uprooted by powerful gusts, lay strewn on roads.
TWO MAJOR OIL PORTS CLOSED
Two of the country's three major Gulf oil ports were closed on Sunday because of heavy rains, winds and sea swells.
Pemex said it was deploying boats and helicopters to evacuate the 8,142 workers from its drilling platforms in the oil-rich Campeche Sound off the Yucatan peninsula's western coast. The state oil monopoly said the remaining 800 workers would also be airlifted out if the situation got worse.
Thirty-two ports were closed for small vessels along the northern and eastern coasts of the Yucatan.
Isidore battered Cuba late last week, forcing the evacuation of an estimated 292,00 people, and then strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane as it approached Mexico. It was expected to dump up to 20 inches (50 cm) of rain in Yucatan. A Category 3 storm can cause extensive damage.
The low-lying peninsula is a popular tourist region, boasting the ruins of ancient Maya cities such as Chichen Itza as well as tourist resorts like Cancun and the Caribbean island of Cozumel.
Heavy winds bent palm trees along Cancun's white beaches but it was expected to escape the worst of the storm.
Coastal storm-surge flooding along Yucatan's north coast was as high as 8 to 12 feet above normal tide levels, along with battering waves.
According to this, it could head for Texas or Louisiana. Heads up Texans and Cajuns !! 
Isidore rips up Yucatán coast
09/23/2002
Associated Press
MERIDA, Mexico - Powerful Hurricane Isidore drove tens of thousands of people from their homes Sunday as it raked the northern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula then veered inland toward the state capital.
The storm shredded trees, knocked out power, set roofs dancing in the air and prompted the state oil company to evacuate 8,000 oil workers from drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the Category 3 storm could grow stronger and head north in two days, putting it on a possible course for Texas or Louisiana.
At 10 p.m. Dallas time, Isidore was about 20 miles southeast of Merida. It was heading southwest at about 5 mph.
Forecasters said Isidore had maximum sustained winds of 120 mph and could weaken more until it re-emerges over water in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday.
Gov. Patricio Padron said Yucatán was experiencing "the worst of scenarios." Communications and travel to many areas were cut off. The governor said he had no confirmed reports of deaths and no estimate of damage. Some local radio stations earlier reported deaths from traffic accidents, but details and their relation to the storm were unclear.
The governor said some coastal residents had rejected the appeals of troops trying to enforce his mandatory evacuation order. Officials canceled classes Monday for 480,000 students to free classrooms for use as shelters.
The storm downed power lines and forced authorities to cut power in other areas because of the danger. Several television and radio stations were knocked off the air.
The state oil monopoly, Petroleos Mexicanos, announced it was evacuating more than 8,000 workers from oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico as a precaution. Eight hundred others were left aboard pending developments.
Heavy waves pounded the piers and washed onto coastal boulevards in Progreso, the peninsula's main port city, 20 miles to the north of Merida. Reporters saw light poles uprooted and hurled to the ground as their lamp fixtures continued to twirl in the winds above.
Soldiers and police in all-terrain vehicles scoured muddy roads and streets along the coast looking for residents. The navy used small vessels to cruise from village to village, enforcing the mandatory evacuations.
Torrential rains associated with Isidore caused flooding that killed a 16-year-old boy and an 89-year-old man on Nicaragua's Pacific Coast.
Isidore hit western Cuba on Friday and Saturday with 100 mph winds and torrential rains. The amount of damage was unclear, but a tour of the affected region found heavy flooding across the western part of the island.
In southern Louisiana on Sunday, residents kept a wary eye on Hurricane Isidore's progress as officials with 12 parishes had a conference call with National Weather Service forecasters, trying to glean clues about where the storm would head next. The forecasters told Louisiana officials that the storm could hit anywhere from Brownsville, Texas, to Biloxi, Miss.
Online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/latestnews/stories/092302dninthurricane.c58.html
Merida is a lovely, lovely city, very much influenced by the French. Every Sunday afternoon in the main zocalo, they have Domingo en Merida, a cultural gathering with music and dance. It's about 50 miles inland. I'm sure Isidore is beating the snot out of Progesso. Progresso is a resort area about 50 miles north of Merida. Progresso was heavily damaged by hurricane Gilbert in the late 80's.
I hope they get the oil workers off the rigs in Campeche Sound. Campeche Sound is very shallow and that makes it more dangerous. The main highway in Campeche (the city) is right next to the water and when we were there, the sea wall was not that high. If Isidore doesn't turn north, it looks like it's going to hit Villahermosa. Villahermosa is a big oil town a few hundred miles south of Veracruz. One of its parks has the Olmec heads. Or it could hit Veracruz before turning north.
weather: Latest 5-day outlook for D-FW