Deadly hurricane Ivan flexed its muscles off Mexico's Caribbean coast today bringing heavy rains and choppy seas that sent thousands of residents and tourists fleeing beach resorts and kept ferries in dock.
Emergency services had evacuated more than 10,000 tourists and residents from low-lying areas near Cancun, famed for its white beaches, night life and turquoise waters.
"Stormy winds of up to 40 kilometers per hour (25 mph) have just begun to appear in Cozumel, Isla Mujeres and Cancun. The sea has started to bite and it is now not navigable," said Mr Jose Nemesio Medina, head of civil protection in Quintana Roo state.
The storm, which has killed 68 people in its rampage through the Caribbean, was 85 miles (136 km) southeast of Cuba.
A rare Category 5 hurricane, it was set to hit the western edge of Cuba on Monday evening, brushing past the Mexican tourist resorts as it squeezes northward through the Yucatan Channel separating Mexico and the island.
Mexican civil protection officials said more than 10,000 people had been evacuated in the past two days, with almost all 2,500 residents of Isla Mujeres island escaping to shore.
Local officials set up temporary shelters and stored food and water.
Mexico's main oil exporting ports remained open despite cloudy conditions caused by Ivan, the Transportation Ministry said.