Hurricane Erick has rapidly intensified into a powerful Category 4 storm as it bears down on Mexico’s southern Pacific coast, posing a “potentially destructive” threat, according to forecasters.
With maximum sustained winds at 195 kph (121 mph), Erick was located roughly 90 km from Puerto Ángel as of Wednesday evening, and is expected to make landfall early on Thursday.
The National Hurricane Centre (NHC) warned the storm could further strengthen before landfall.
Erick could become the most intense hurricane to make landfall along Mexico’s Pacific coast this early in the season. It’s also the first to make landfall in the season, which runs from May to November.
The NHC has warned the hurricane could unleash up to 41 cm of rain in Oaxaca and Guerrero, raising fears of flash floods and landslides. In response, Mexican authorities have activated more than 500 shelters and deployed over 18,000 first responders across both states.
Late Wednesday, Erick's projected path crept south, closer to the resort city of Puerto Escondido in Oaxaca state, and centered on a sparsely populated stretch of coastline between the Oaxacan resort and Acapulco to the northwest.
President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a video message Wednesday night that all activities in the region were suspended. She urged people in flood-prone areas to “stay in their homes or to move to shelters”.
Guerrero’s governor, Evelyn Salgado, announced the suspension of schools and transport in Acapulco and coastal communities ahead of the storm’s arrival.
Acapulco’s port closed Tuesday evening. Salgado said 582 shelters were set to receive people who might evacuate their homes.
Waves were crashing onto the esplanade in Puerto Escondido by nightfall, swamping wooden fishing boats that had been pulled up there for safety. The beach disappeared under pounding waves and the rising tide had already reached the interiors of some waterfront restaurants.
Last-minute purchases ended at nightfall as stores closed and the streets emptied.
Earlier in the day, fishermen in Puerto Escondido pulled their boats out of the water ahead of the storm's arrival. Some surfers continued to ride waves at the Zicatela beach, even with red flags up to warn people to stay out of the water.
The city of nearly 1 million was devastated in October 2023 by Hurricane Otis, a Category 5 hurricane that rapidly intensified and caught many unprepared. At least 52 people died in Otis and the storm severely damaged almost all of the resort’s hotels.
Elsewhere, workers nailed sheets of plywood over shop windows and stacked sandbags outside doorways. Cars lined up to fill their tanks and shoppers made last-minute purchases before rushing home.
In Acapulco on Wednesday, there was a strong presence of National Guard and police in the streets, but most visible were trucks from the national power company. Crews worked to clear drainage canals and brush.
Forecasters said Erick was expected to lash Mexico’s Pacific coast with heavy rain, strong winds and a fierce storm surge. Rains of up to 16 inches (40 centimetres) could fall across the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Guerrero, with lesser totals in Chiapas, Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco states, the center’s advisory said. The rainfall threatened flooding and mudslides, especially in areas with steep terrain.
A hurricane warning was in effect from Acapulco to Puerto Ángel. A hurricane warning means hurricane conditions are expected in the area, and preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion, according to the hurricane center advisory.
Ms Sheinbaum warned in her daily briefing that those in the hurricane’s path should heed government instructions and wait out the storm in their homes or designated shelters.
Having doubled in strength in less than a day, Erick was churning through an ideal environment for quick intensification. Last year, there were 34 incidents of rapid intensification — when a storm gains at least 35 mph in 24 hours — which is about twice as many as average and causes problems with forecasting, according to the hurricane center.
Once again, forecasters are predicting an above-average hurricane season in the Atlantic, with between eight and 11 hurricanes, and four to six of those reaching major hurricane status.
Additional reporting by agencies.
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