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Northern Sonora Hit by a Winter Storm

Winter Storm Brings Freezing Temps to Sonora

File photo: Snow on a Sonoran desert cactus. (c) B. R. Waldon

Freezing Temperatures Expected in Sonora: Northeast to Be Most Affected by a Winter Storm

Sonoran media have announced the arrival of the second winter storm in Sonora that bring chances of snow, rain, and plummeting temperatures, with lows reaching as frigid as 10.4°F (-12°C). In Hermosillo, temperatures are expected to dip to around 39.2°F (4°C).

Authorities are urging residents to take precautions as the storm progresses. Armando Castañeda Sánchez, coordinator of Civil Protection in Sonora, reported that the northeastern part of the state will be most affected, but the drop in temperatures will be felt across the entire region.

What to Expect

The most immediate impact of the winter storm, starting in the early hours of Monday, includes strong gusts of wind, particularly in the northwest of the state. As the storm continues, the northern areas face increased chances of rain and sleet.

Castañeda Sánchez outlined expected minimum temperatures for various regions of Sonora:

Northwest: 42.8°F to 32°F (6°C to 0°C)
North: 32°F to 17.6°F (0°C to -8°C)
Northeast: 10.4°F to 23°F (-12°C to -5°C)

“These are very significant drops in temperatures across the state,” he emphasized.

Safety Warnings

The Civil Protection coordinator urged residents to avoid using gas heaters in enclosed spaces to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. In case of an emergency, citizens are encouraged to call 911, as state and municipal government agencies will be actively working to protect vulnerable populations.

Forecasted Minimum Temperatures by Region

According to the State Civil Protection Unit, here are the estimated temperature ranges for the various regions of Sonora during this storm:

Northwest: 42.8°F to 50°F (6°C to 10°C)
North: 17.6°F to 32°F (-8°C to 0°C)
Northeast: 10.4°F to 23°F (-12°C to -5°C)
Center: 39.2°F to 50°F (4°C to 10°C)
South: 41°F to 53.6°F (5°C to 12°C)
East: 10.4°F to 23°F (-12°C to -5°C)

Stay Safe

Residents and visitors are encouraged to monitor local weather updates and take necessary precautions to stay warm and safe during this extreme weather event.

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US-Sonora border closed for “nonessential travel”

Early closure notice results in rush of holiday weekend visitors

On Wednesday, July 1, in order to try to stem the rapid growth of coronavirus cases in her state, Sonora Governor Claudia Pavlovich announced that the border between Arizona and Sonora would be closed to non-essential (leisure) travel at three major border crossings, starting on the 4th of July weekend.

The operation, conducted in coordination with Mexico’s National Institute of Migration (INM), would place officials south of border crossings in Agua Prieta, Nogales and San Luis Rio Colorado. The Lukeville-Sonoyta border crossing would remain open to allow tourists to visit the coastal city of Puerto Peñasco, also known as Rocky Point.

Essential activities

The closure defined “essential” travel in the same way as U.S. border closures have, with the exception of being able to cross the border for education-related activities, which is not allowed.

Essential activities for travelers who want to visit Sonora include crossing the border for medical and dental services, to purchase medication and for legitimate business purposes.

Crossing the border for leisure activities is not permitted.

Rush to the border

As soon as the closure was announced, Arizonans packed their weekend bags and rushed the border to get into Sonora before the ban began.

But at the Lukeville border crossing, citizens and local police in Sonoyta essentially blocked southbound traffic on Friday. They stopped foreign vehicles and turned them around, not allowing traffic to proceed to Rocky Point. The blockade was disbanded before the weekend stream of traffic to Puerto Peñasco.

Lax enforcement?

On Friday, El Imparcial reporter Rubén A. Ruiz watched a checkpoint between Adolfo López Mateos Avenue and Campillo Street in Nogales. Operated by state police assisted by the Nogales Civil Protection Unit (UPC), in a two-hour period on Friday morning they turned back 12 vehicles from the U.S.

But starting at noon, they began to allow all vehicles to pass and continued to do so for the time that reporters watched the checkpoint.

Current border closures

Currently, the border crossings at Douglas-Agua Prieta, Nogales and San Luis Colorado are closed to southbound non-essential traffic.

The Lukeville-Sonoyta border crossing should be open. However, due to conflicts between the municipalities of Sonoyta and Puerto Peñasco, there may be intermittent closures that prevent southbound traffic from the U.S.

Woman with COVID-19 symptoms dies on Sonora passenger bus

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Boarded the bus on Saturday; died on Sunday night

A 28-year-old woman traveling with her family on a commercial bus was unresponsive at approximately 11:00 p.m. on Sunday night when the bus reached at the Querobabi military checkpoint south of Santa Ana, Sonora.

When her mother tried to wake her, it became evident that she had passed away.

According to Sonora media reports, the woman had been traveling with symptoms of COVID-19. She her family had boarded the bus on July 4 in Cuautla, Morelos and were passing through Sonora en route to their home in San Quintin, Baja California.

It was not clear whether the woman was symptomatic when she boarded the bus for her journey home.

Bus stations in Mexico typically check the temperature of passengers as they board. However, it is possible that this screening was not available in Cuautla, due to the time of boarding or lack of equipment.

It is not clear whether contact tracing was done, or will be done, for other passengers who may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus as they shared a bus with the woman.

Tourist advisory

We do not recommend bus travel in Mexico at this time. It has become apparent that people infected with the coronavirus may cause buses to become a congregate setting for the rapid transmission of the virus.

And if you do not feel well, or have flu-like symptoms, do not go out in public and especially avoid indoor congregate settings. Stay home.

Weekend accident kills 4 on Sonora highway

Adults and children killed and injured in multi-vehicle accident

According to published Sonora news reports, a collision between two vehicles at kilometer 74 + 300 on the highway between San Luis Rio Colorado and the Gulf of Santa Clara on late Saturday night or early Sunday morning left 16 adults and children wounded or dead.

The accident was caused by a collision between a minivan with Baja California license plates and a gold-colored Buick sedan that did not have license plates.

Four people were declared deceased at the site of the accident, including a five-year-old girl.

Twelve others were taken to hospitals, including adults in their 20’s and a three-year-old girl.

Alcohol may have been a contributing factor in the accident.

Travel advisory

We strongly recommend and reiterate that visitors to Sonora should not drive at night, especially on highways, due to the high possibility of dangerous conditions.

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Coronavirus cases continue to grow in Sonora, Mexico

The novel coronavirus has spread rapidly through the state of Sonora, and as you can see on the graphic above, Sonora’s coronavirus cases are still on a steep incline. Because of this, we do not recommend any travel to the state of Sonora, with the possible exception of brief border visits, until the pandemic has run its course.

Sonoran health officials confirmed the first coronavirus case in the state on March 16, a 72-year-old musician who had returned to Hermosillo from a trip to the United States.

To their credit, the Sonora state government, police and health officials were able to stop the throngs of people from migrating to the beach during Semana Santa, the holy week before Easter.

The week is an annual event that is Sonora’s spring break, and the fact that the state sucessfully closed beaches and imposed stay-at-home orders, and that the people complied with the guidance, definitely helped to slow the level of infection in Sonora.

Since then, though, the state’s cases have seen a continual increase, with a surge beginning in mid-May that continues today, where the state has 6,173 confirmed cases and 550 deaths.

Because there is no widespread testing program, the number of cases reported reflect sick people who have been tested as they sought medical assistance. This indicates that reported cases are far less than actual numbers of people infected with the virus. The state has no organized contact tracing program.

Some manufacturers in Sonora who are deemed “essential” have continued to remain in operation. In addition, at the beginning of June, other maquiladora factories with ties to American companies began to re-open. The Hermosillo Ford plant opened on June 1, and within two weeks an employee had died from COVID-19.

To reaffirm, we do not recommend travel to Mexico during the pandemic. If you become ill while in Sonora, you may not be able to find a hospital bed and would likely need to be evacuated. So, if you do visit Sonora for an extended period of time, you should plan and prepare for potential issues, to include purchasing medical evacuation insurance.

To check daily numbers of coronavirus infections in Arizona and Sonora, click here.

No tourists allowed at Comcaác Seri New Year celebrations this year

Priority to protect the health of the Seris

This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, outsiders will not be able to see the traditional New Year’s celebrations of the Comcaac Seri on June 30 and July 1.

The Seris traditionally hold five fiestas in Desemboque and Punta Chueca, where hundreds of visitors typically attend.

But the small Comcaác communities do not have a doctor or medical equipment, so they must be very careful about avoiding the coronavirus.

Miguel Estrella Romero, President of the Council of Elders of Desemboque de los Seris, was quoted in the Sonoran newspaper El Imparcial yesterday regarding the travel ban.

He acknowledged that the lack of tourists will directly affect native artisans, who sell their art and crafts during the events.

“But health comes first,” he said.

The Comcaác New Year celebrates a time when the Sea of Cortez and Sonoran Desert begin a cycle of regeneration, with an abundance of food from the desert and fish from the sea.