for the Yucatán peninsula from Chetumal to Cabo Catoche in Quintana Roo. The next day as Keith was nearing hurricane intensity, the watch was upgraded to a warning, and a tropical storm warning and hurricane watch was issued for the Belize coastline from Belize City to the Mexican border. At that time, the trajectory was expected to go more to the northwest, and when the storm turned to a slow westward drift, hurricane warnings were issued for the Belize coast with only about 24 hours of lead time for the offshore islands. The warnings for the Yucatán peninsula were dropped as Keith weakened. On October 2, the government of Belize declared a state of emergency and activated the entire Belize Defence Force due to the storm's threat. The airport in Belize City was closed during Keith's passage, limiting transportation from the country's mainland to its offshore islands. In Corozal, Belize, authorities evacuated the entire city of 10,000 people to numerous shelters in Orange Walk. Officials were also ordered evacuations for Belize City, setting up shelters in Belmopan. Overall, about 25,000 people evacuate, or about 10% of Belize's population. Three hospitals were evacuated in the country. In a post-storm assessment, residents on the offshore islands acknowledged they were unprepared for the storm and did not anticipate such intensity. In Quintana Roo, 5,000 people from Chetumal and surrounding low-lying areas were forced to evacuate to 30 shelters. Offshore along a coral reef, about 50 fishermen stayed on a coral reef during the storm. In the Bay of Campeche, Pemex evacuated about 6,300 workers from its offshore oil platforms. Officials in Yucatán and Veracruz declared states of emergency. When Keith reached the Gulf of Mexico and began re-intensifying, a hurricane warning was issued from Tuxpan to Matamoros in northeastern Mexico, with a tropical storm watch issued northward to Port Mansfield, Texas. About 3,000 residents in Tamaulipas evacuated to 250 shelters, and in neighboring Veracruz, about 175 people left their houses before the storm struck. The threat of Hurricane Keith caused Mexican authorities to close most ports along the gulf coast, and many schools in the area were closed. Impact Keith's slow and erratic movement caused it to produce strong winds and heavy rainfall in Central America. Belize bore the brunt of the storm, with about $280 million in damage and 19 confirmed fatalities, primarily related to flooding. Several other countries reported significant but