Hurricane Simon was edging slowly along Mexico’s west-central coast on Tuesday, bringing strong winds and flooding rain as tropical weather systems left at least five people dead and damaged towns and resorts along the Pacific.
The storm’s eye remained offshore, while bands of rain and wind battered communities between the Sierra Madre and the Pacific near Puerto Vallarta.
Simon had maximum sustained winds of 90mph, making it a Category 1 hurricane, and was about 90 miles west of Cabo Corrientes, moving north-west at 3mph. The US National Hurricane Center said the system had technically become a small tropical cyclone.
Forecasters expected some weakening over the following day, but said Simon was likely to remain a hurricane through midweek and could strengthen again by Wednesday. Hurricane-force winds extended up to 10 miles from its centre, with tropical-storm-force winds reaching as far as 45 miles.
In Guerrero state, Simon brought down trees and electricity poles, blocked roads and flooded homes in coastal communities including Acapulco, Governor Evelyn Salgado said. A 71-year-old man died in the state capital, Chilpancingo, after a wall collapsed.
Puerto Vallarta workers removed wooden panels from boarded-up shops as rainfall eased and businesses began reopening. The popular tourist destination’s international airport suspended operations until Tuesday morning.
One tourism worker, Noelia Carrillo, said residents remained uncertain about the storm’s next move. “Personally, I think we should remain on alert because we don’t really know whether it will arrive, move elsewhere or dissipate,” she said.
Flooding and rescues in Baja California
In Baja California, rescuers searched flooded parts of Ensenada after the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel swept away vehicles and damaged homes. Four people died in the state, including a 13-year-old girl, two women and a four-year-old boy.
Six people were still missing, including four in Ensenada and a father and son from San Felipe who had gone fishing on Saturday and failed to return, according to Baja California’s civil protection authorities.
Floodwater also cut off several communities after landslides and rivers overflowed. Resident Johana Nuriulu said heavy rain knocked out electricity before a nearby stream burst its banks during the night.
“Everything was being dragged away,” Ms Nuriulu said, describing water rushing through streets and homes and carrying away vehicles and belongings.
Military helicopters rescued 32 people from a ranch in Ensenada, including 22 foreigners and 13 young people. State security officials said some of those rescued were missionaries, among them Germans and Americans.
About 14,000 federal and state personnel were deployed across Baja California to assist residents and respond to the emergency, Governor Marina del Pilar Ávila said.
Storm damage across the US south-west
Rachel weakened into a post-tropical cyclone as it moved into Southern California, where unusually large waves damaged a boardwalk and struck homes in Long Beach. Some residents were forced to leave their properties.
Las Vegas recorded 1.08 inches of rain by Sunday morning, matching its all-time daily rainfall record for October, set in 1947. Flood advisories were later lifted across much of Utah, Arizona and the wider south-west.
Dozens of runners and volunteers taking part in the Moab 240 ultramarathon in Utah were evacuated after flooding left them stranded. Forecasters said further rain was linked to another weather system and was expected to end by Wednesday.
Separately, power was gradually restored after Hurricane Isaias struck the US south-east. At least four deaths were linked to that storm, which came ashore in Florida as a Category 2 hurricane before moving through Alabama and weakening farther north.
