text: hurricane isis ( 1998 ) hurricane isis was the deadliest tropical cyclone and only hurricane to make landfall during the 1998 pacific hurricane season . the ninth tropical storm and sixth hurricane of the season , isis developed on september 1 from an interaction between a tropical wave and a large surface circulation to the southwest of mexico . it moved northward , striking the extreme southeastern portion of the baja california peninsula before attaining hurricane status in the gulf of california . isis made landfall at topolobampo in the mexican state of sinaloa on september 3 , and quickly lost its low - level circulation . the remnants persisted for several days before dissipating in the u.s. state of idaho . in mexico , isis destroyed over 700 houses and killed 14 people ; this is primarily due to its heavy rainfall which peaked at over 20 inches ( 500 mm ) in southern baja california sur . the rainfall caused widespread damage to roads and railways , stranding thousands of people . moisture from the remnants of isis extended into the southwestern united states , resulting in light rainfall , dozens of traffic accidents , and power outages to thousands of residents in san diego county , california . meteorological history a tropical wave moved off the coast of africa on august 14 , 1998 . it traveled westward , and on august 19 spawned the tropical depression that eventually became hurricane bonnie . the wave continued westward across the atlantic ocean and caribbean sea , and crossed central america into the eastern pacific ocean on august 25 . the wave decreased its forward speed while approaching a large low - level circulation over southern mexico . a broad area of disturbed weather formed in association with the wave and the low - level circulation , and after persisting for several days developed a smaller low - level circulation on august 29 about 575 miles ( 925 km ) south - southeast of cabo san lucas . on august 31 , the two primary areas of convection were well - removed from the center . by early on september 1 , despite a lack of convective organization , the low - cloud circulation was sufficiently well - defined that the national hurricane center designated it as tropical depression ten - e , or the tenth tropical depression of the season , about 350 miles ( 565 km ) south of cabo san lucas . in real time , the national hurricane center first upgraded the system 21 hours later . the depression initially tracked slowly north - northwestward and gradually strengthened . late on september 1 it intensified into tropical storm isis while located about 200 miles ( 320 km ) south of cabo san lucas . upon becoming a tropical storm , the deep convection was not organized , causing one forecaster to describe isis as a large monsoon - like system . a mid - level trough extending southward from the arizona / california border caused the storm to accelerate northward . the storm quickly strengthened ; six hours after isis became a tropical storm it reached winds of 70 mph ( 115 km / h ) . very deep , symmetrical convection developed over the poorly defined center of circulation while banding features began to form , although ill - defined outflow and land interaction with the baja california peninsula initially prevented further strengthening . at 1200 utc on september 2 , isis made landfall on extreme southeastern baja california sur as a strong tropical storm , and subsequently turned to the north - northeast . after entering the gulf of california , an eye began to become apparent on visible satellite imagery , and it is estimated isis attained hurricane status late on september 2 . continuing northward , it struck topolobampo in the state of sinaloa early on september 3 as a minimal hurricane . isis weakened to a tropical storm a few hours after landfall , and subsequent to turning to the north - northwest the low - level circulation dissipated over sierra madre occidental . the remnants entered southern arizona on september 4 and tracked around an upper - level low . after entering nevada on september 5 , the remnants of isis passed into oregon before dissipating in idaho on september 8 . preparations coinciding with the national hurricane center 's first advisory on isis , the government of mexico issued a tropical storm warning from dolores to puerto cortés along the baja california peninsula . this helped some of the residents get an early on september 2 , the warning was extended from santa rosalía to punta abreojos , while an additional tropical storm warning was issued from el dorado to guaymas . after isis became a hurricane , officials issued a hurricane warning from dolores to punta san gabriel on the baja california peninsula and from el dorado to bahía kino on the mainland . in baja california sur , 2 , 500 residents were evacuated to emergency shelters . officials closed the port at mazatlán and recommended fisherman along the coast of the gulf of california to remain at port . officials set up 49 shelters on the mainland to provide evacuees with food , clothing and medical attention . the mexican army assisted residents in evacuation , and the navy provided medical aid and assistance to boat owners . more than 24 , 000 people were sheltered during the storm . impact mexico isis first affected baja california sur on september 2 as a tropical storm . shortly after making landfall , a weather reporting station at san josé del cabo recorded sustained winds of 26 mph ( 42 km / h ) , and gusts reaching up to 46 mph ( 74 km / h ) . a station on the islas marías also reported sustained winds of 54 mph ( 87 km / h ) . the winds left widespread areas without power or telephone . the storm produced heavy rainfall in the southern portion of the peninsula , including a 24 ‑ hour total of 12 . 99 inches ( 330 mm ) at los cabos and a peak rainfall total of 24 . 02 inches ( 610 mm ) at santiago . a married couple was killed after attempting to cross a flooded stream in los cabos . initially , reports indicated a family was missing in la paz , though they were later proven false . flooding from the storm closed all roads to the north of los cabos and caused damage to the roads in the area . mudslides from the rain buried at least 120 cars in the area . rainfall reached over 10 inches ( 250 mm ) in the coastal region of jalisco , and lighter amounts of precipitation extended further to the southeast and northeast . one person was reported missing in jalisco . the heaviest 24 ‑ hour rainfall total in the state of sinaloa was 8 . 66 inches ( 220 mm ) , whereas in sonora a maximum of 4 . 72 inches ( 120 mm ) of rain were recorded . strong waves from the hurricane struck the mexican mainland , with four people injured at mazatlán when their boat washed onto rocks and was destroyed . rainfall from the storm flooded 15 communities in and around mazatlán , and the army assisted residents in emergency evacuations . at los mochis , near the point where isis made landfall , the hurricane resulted in the destruction of 300 homes , as well as in seven fatalities . throughout the city , strong winds from the hurricane downed street posts , tree limbs , and power lines , with one person seriously injured from a downed power line . additionally , the roof of a gas station collapsed from the winds . more than 1 , 200 bus passengers in sinaloa were stranded due to road closures from the hurricane , including the closure of the coastal highway in the southern portion of sinaloa as it had been washed out due to floodwaters . rainfall from the storm caused severe river flooding in some locations , and authorities advised those living along the fuerte river to be prepared for a possible evacuation . the winds from isis left about 120 , 000 people in the municipality of ahome without power . throughout mexico , the passage of hurricane isis resulted in 14 deaths and the loss of 769 homes , with property damage estimates totaling over $ 5 million ( 1998 usd , 50 million 1998 mxn , $ 6 . 3 million 2007 usd ) . according to a speech by president ernesto zedillo , isis damaged the water systems in 173 localities ; it also damaged 154 primary schools and nine high schools , minor in most cases , causing most schools to be closed for around a week . a total of 730 miles ( 1175 km ) of railroad track was damaged by mudslides or flooding , with one bridge entirely destroyed and another four damaged . united states thunderstorms from the remnants of isis dropped more than two inches ( 50 mm ) of rainfall across southern arizona , resulting in some flash flood warnings and flooding on roadways . the heaviest precipitation fell across the santa catalina and rincon mountains near tucson , which saw precipitation amounts of up to three inches ( 75 mm ) . otherwise , no flooding was reported in the tucson area , and the tucson international airport reported only 1 . 1 inches ( 28 mm ) as a result of the storm . the moisture extended into southern california and produced moderate precipitation across the region . bakersfield reported a one - day rainfall record on september 4 with 0 . 23 inches ( 5 . 8 mm ) of precipitation , breaking the previous record of 0 . 17 inches ( 4 . 3 mm ) set in 1963 . rainfall amounts at frazier park peaked at 1 . 53 inches ( 39 mm ) . agricultural losses , primarily from vintners and raisin growers , rose up to $ 5 million in damage ( 1998 usd , $ 6 . 33 million 2007 usd ) , either directly due to rain or indirectly due to the additional steps to treat the increase in fungus activity on produce . slick roads from the rain resulted in nearly 80 traffic accidents in san diego county , ranging from fender benders to moderate injuries . thunderstorms from the remnants of isis damaged a san diego gas & electric substation at kearny mesa , leaving 10 , 000 customers without power ; the outage was short lived and completely restored within two hours . about 1 , 000 homes and businesses were temporarily without power in escondido , and another 2 , 700 customers lost electricity in rancho bernardo . rainfall in and around san diego reached a maximum of 0 . 5 inches ( 13 mm ) at la mesa . heavy clouds from isis produced scattered rainfall and temporary relief to severe heat conditions in the los angeles area . moisture from the remnants of isis spread across the southwestern united states , and rainfall reached over 0 . 75 inches ( 19 mm ) in nevada and utah . low - level moisture dissipated as it continued inland , due to dry air , although upper - level moisture produced light rain across the northwestern united states ; pocatello , idaho recorded 0 . 59 inches ( 15 mm ) , while missoula , montana recorded 0 . 39 inches ( 10 mm ) . aftermath aid programs began immediately after isis moved ashore and dissipated to provide support to the affected population . the comisión nacional del agua distributed 1 . 6 million u.s. gallons ( 1 . 3 million imp gal / 6 million l ) of water and provided repair equipment to the 173 localities whose water systems were damaged . more than 650 health workers worked to combat the spread of diseases , including monitoring sanitary conditions of water and foods , and sprayed nearly 9 , 900 acres ( 40 km2 ) of land to prevent the breeding of mosquitoes . the force also disinfected more than 6 , 600 latrines and removed more than 850 short tons ( 770 t ) of sewage to prevent the spread of epidemic . no medical - related deaths occurred as a result of this attention . twenty - four hours after the passage of the hurricane , workers had restored power to 70 % of the affected residents in sinaloa , and by six days after the storm , electrical service was completely restored . the damage to the federal highway between culiacán and los mochis along the coastal region of sinaloa was restored about 48 hours after the passage of the hurricane . the rehabilitation of the agricultural infrastructure began immediately , and most of the drainage networks were repaired by about two weeks after the hurricane . about half of the damaged railways were repaired by about a month after the storm . the total cost for reconstruction and aid amounted to about $ 18 . 5 million ( 1998 usd , 175 million 1998 mxn , $ 23 . 3 million 2007 usd ) , about 94 % from federal funds and the rest from state funding . a portion of the funding was allocated to assist the reconstruction of destroyed houses .