PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico — As Tropical Storm Rachel headed for Baja’s northern coast, bringing rain and coastal flooding to Southern California and beyond, Hurricane Simon strengthened into a powerful Category 4 storm as it barreled toward Mexico farther south.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said early Saturday that Simon’s maximum sustained winds increased to 150 mph. A storm of that strength or greater is considered a major hurricane.
The center said it expected Simon “to be near or just inland” of Mexico’s west-central coast on Sunday. The hurricane could bring as much as 10 to 20 inches of rain over parts of southwestern Mexico, with some areas in the states of Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco receiving up to 30 inches.
The Flying Men of Papantla perform the “Danza de los Voladores (Dance of the Flyers)” on the beach as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Saturday.
(Fernando Llano / Associated Press)
“This rainfall will produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain,” the hurricane center warned in a bulletin that also urged residents to take immediate action to prepare as tropical storm conditions were expected to arrive Saturday afternoon.
Jalisco state suspended classes Friday and Monday in 22 coastal municipalities and began evacuating dozens of people from at-risk areas. It also asked the tourism sector in Puerto Vallarta, a popular destination for U.S. tourists, to ensure that workers and visitors were fully accommodated in shelters or safe zones by Friday afternoon.
Convenience stores, hotels and other businesses in Puerto Vallarta were boarding up their windows Saturday morning, when few were walking the streets under overcast skies.
“Let’s hope it doesn’t hit us, right? That it doesn’t affect us,” Jesús Gómez said as he stood outside a shop and handed out free samples of candied peanuts to passersby. “We’ll be working as usual throughout the day, but when Civil Protection officials come and tell us we need to close, then we’ll close and take shelter until the storm passes.”
The hurricane center expected a dangerous storm surge “along the immediate coast near and to the east of where the center makes landfall.” The agency warned that near the coast, large and destructive waves will accompany the surge.
Meanwhile, Canadian tourist Ed Currie, who along with his wife still has five more days to enjoy Puerto Vallarta, said the hurricane had not yet affected his plans.
“Just stay in the hotel and look out the window hopefully,” he said of what the couple would do Saturday. “I just don’t know what to expect.”
