From the HERE City National Desk
Hurricane Simon was sitting just off Mexico’s Pacific coast Sunday morning as an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm, with forecasters expecting it to move near or just inland over west-central Mexico later in the day.
Simon peaked overnight at 155 mph, only just below the Category 5 threshold. By 6 a.m. Central time the National Hurricane Center had it at 150 mph, about 60 miles west of Manzanillo and moving north-northwest at 6 mph. Hurricane-force winds reach up to 25 miles from the center, and tropical-storm-force winds extend up to 90 miles.
Rain is the biggest danger. The storm could drop 10 to 20 inches over parts of southwestern Mexico, with isolated totals of 30 inches possible in Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco through Monday. Forecasters warned of life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in steep terrain.
A dangerous storm surge is expected along the coast near and east of where the center comes ashore, with large and destructive waves. Swells are also likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip currents along the southwestern and west-central coast over the next few days.
Jalisco state suspended classes in 22 coastal municipalities and began evacuating dozens of people from at-risk areas. Officials asked the tourism industry in Puerto Vallarta, a popular destination for U.S. travelers, to make sure workers and visitors were in shelters or safe zones. Stores and hotels there were boarding up windows Saturday.
Some slight weakening is possible, but the hurricane center said Simon is still forecast to be a major hurricane near or over the coast Sunday, with rapid weakening possible if its core moves fully onshore. It is expected to stay very close to the coast on Monday.
