At least two people have died in Mexico after Hurricane Simon and former tropical storm Rachel brought torrential rain, flooding and dangerous coastal conditions to communities along the Pacific coast.
In Guerrero, Governor Evelyn Salgado said a 71-year-old man was killed when a retaining wall collapsed during intense rainfall. His family identified him as Albino Moreno Jimenez, who had been feeding his animals on the western outskirts of Chilpancingo when the wall fell.
Deaths and missing people in Mexico
A second death was reported in Baja California, where Governor Marina del Pilar said a young girl had died from the effects of Rachel, which reached Category 3 strength earlier this month before weakening.
At least 10 people are missing in the state, including eight in Ensenada and two in the fishing town of San Felipe. Preliminary figures have varied, with a local newspaper reporting two deaths in Baja California and 11 people missing.
Rachel reached Mexico as a post-tropical cyclone before its remnants moved north through southern California. Officials have warned that the death toll from both systems could rise as communities assess damage from flooding, high winds and fallen trees.
A cliff diver, Juan Patines, was also reported to have died in Mazatlan, in Sinaloa, after entering the sea on Saturday night. Mexican media said powerful surf made it difficult for him to return to shore, prompting authorities to suspend cliff-diving at the site. Officials have not confirmed whether the death was directly connected to Hurricane Simon.
Simon has remained off Mexico’s western coast since the weekend, weakening from a Category 4 hurricane to Category 2 by late Monday morning. Its maximum sustained winds were about 155kph, while its centre was around 115km west-south-west of Cabo Corrientes in Jalisco, moving west at 3kph.
Forecasters expect Simon could make landfall on Thursday or Friday. Hurricane warnings remain in force along parts of western Mexico, where heavy rain, landslides and dangerous surf pose further risks.
A record Pacific storm season
The storms have formed during an unusually active Pacific hurricane season, with 21 named storms recorded across the north-eastern and central Pacific so far this year.
Simon pushed accumulated cyclone energy in the region to a record high on Sunday. The measure reflects the combined strength and duration of tropical storms and has already exceeded the previous record, set in 2018.
Hawaii has also been hit by several major storms this season. Hurricane Lala caused flooding on the Big Island in August, killing a 93-year-old woman and destroying about 100 homes, while Hurricane Lowell later brought damaging winds, storm surge and flooding to Kauai and Niihau.
About 90 per cent of Kauai’s power customers lost electricity during Lowell, and at least two deaths were linked to the storm. Hurricane Nolo brought further flooding and landslides to the Hawaiian islands in late September, although it did not make landfall.
