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Five dead in Mexico; Melissa forms

Hurricane Lorenzo also leaves thousands homeless. Tropical Storm Karen fades.

VERACRUZ, Mexico - Floodwaters from Hurricane Lorenzo were receding Saturday in eastern Mexico after rains triggered mud slides and floods that killed at least five people and drove tens of thousands from their homes.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Melissa was gaining strength Saturday evening over the eastern Atlantic, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said. Melissa had sustained winds of 45 mph but posed no immediate threat to land.

Atlantic Tropical Storm Karen faded into a tropical depression and was likely to dissipate soon, with winds of 35 mph about 495 miles east of the Leeward Islands.

Lorenzo hit Mexico's gulf coast Friday and quickly faded into a potent rainstorm as it moved over the ravine-cut mountains of east-central Mexico, dumping more than 13 inches of rain in some areas in less than a day.

In hard-hit parts of Veracruz state, streets remained flooded by weather that ripped roofs off some 2,000 homes and swept cars away.

Residents in the oil city of Poza Rica fled their homes as the water rose.

In Mexico's Puebla state, a hillside gave way in the village of Ixtaczoquitla, burying a 26-year-old woman and two girls, ages 3 and 5, who appeared to be her daughters, the state government reported.

A 9-year-old girl died in the village of Rancho Nuevo and a 19-year-old man was missing, washed away by a flooded river, the government reported.

In neighboring Veracruz state, an 83-year-old man died after falling into a hole in drenched soil near his home, local police said.

Veracruz's chief civil defense official, Ranulfo Marquez, said it could take weeks for all flooding to subside.

Marquez said 30,000 people were forced from their homes in Veracruz state. Thousands also were evacuated in Puebla state.

[Last modified September 30, 2007, 01:55:47]