Hurricane Otis could reach maximum category before reaching the west coast of Mexico, which is expected to happen this morning, the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
In a statement, the NHC said Otis upgraded from a tropical storm to a dangerous Category 4 hurricane in just a few hours on Tuesday, with maximum sustained winds of 230 kilometers per hour, as it approached the country’s southern Pacific coast. Mexico.
Both the North American center and the National Meteorological Service of Mexico warned that Otis is expected to continue gaining strength and could become a category 5 hurricane, the maximum, with winds exceeding 253 kilometers per hour.
The NHC said Otis, which was about 135 kilometers south-southeast of Acapulco and was moving northwest at 13 kilometers per hour, could make landfall this morning, near the famous Mexican resort.
The hurricane is “extremely dangerous” and “possibly catastrophic,” the center warned.
A hurricane warning was in effect for almost 500 kilometers of the coast of the state of Guerrero, between the cities of Punta Maldonado and Zihuatanejo.
In Acapulco, people rushed back to their homes as rain began to lash the resort and winds intensified, driving tourists away from the beaches.
The Guerrero state government said it was preparing 396 shelters for families who may have to leave their homes due to damage caused by wind or waves.
Mexico’s army and navy sent more than eight thousand soldiers to the region with specialized equipment to assist in rescue operations.
Authorities closed schools and closed the port of Acapulco, where around 300 fishing boats normally dock.
The NHC expects Otis to bring between 13 and 25 centimeters of rain to Guerrero, with up to 38 centimeters of rain possible in some areas. Something that has created fears of landslides and flash floods in the rugged mountainous terrain of this Mexican state.
Meanwhile, in the Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Tammy continued to move northeast with winds of 120 kilometers per hour, after crossing the Caribbean islands located next to Venezuela.
The NHC predicts that Tammy, located about 910 kilometers south-southeast of Bermuda, will lose strength on Thursday.
Acapulco was hit on October 9, 1997 by Hurricane Paulina, which made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane and killed more than 200 people, making it one of the most serious natural disasters in Mexico.
Last week, Hurricane Norma killed three people a little further north, in the state of Sinaloa. The hurricane made landfall twice, first on the Baja California peninsula and then in the state of Sinaloa.
Source: TSF
