Jorge Camacho Rincon, head of Nuevo Leon's civil protection department, while announcing a host of emergency measures at a press conference, said the citizens there "should consider the hurricane as a danger across the whole of the state's territory."

An elderly woman cries at a shelter in Matamoros, Tamaulipas state, Mexico on June 30, 2010. Hurricane Alex was set to make landfall late Wednesday or early Thursday south of the US border with Mexico, possibly as a Category Two hurricane, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said. [Xinhua]

He also urged those living close to rivers, streams and canals to remain highly vigilant.

The department has already evacuated 5,000 people to emergency shelters. The city of San Pedro Garza Garcia announced it would postpone its annual fair in case the Santa Catarina River bursts its banks close to the planned fair site, the University of Monterrey.

In Tamaulipas, evacuation efforts are also underway, with 7,000 people being moved from their coastline homes to shelters.

Tamaulipas officials said Reynosa, a city of around half a million and the largest population center, is facing the risk of serious damage. Other densely populated areas at risk in Tamaulipas include Matamoros, San Fernando, Soto La Marina, Valle Hermoso and Rio Bravo.

Tamaulipas authorities said they were expecting rainfall of up to 250 millimeters (mm) within 24 hours after the storm hits land.

The governor told media some 2,500 troops were sent to the area for relief and rescue efforts.

During its journey up the Atlantic coast, the storm killed five people in Nicaragua, three in El Salvador and two in Guatemala.

The Atlantic hurricane season started on June 1 and will end on Nov. 30.

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's outlook for 2010 calls for 14 to 23 named storms with winds of 62.4 kph or higher, including eight to 14 hurricanes with winds of 118.4 kph or higher and three to seven major hurricanes.