Hurricane Polo churns off Mexico’s Pacific coast as ‘one of the strongest storms ever’

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hurricane Polo grew into one of the most powerful Pacific cyclones in decades on Tuesday, and it was expected to skirt Mexico’s southwestern coast as a Category 5 hurricane.

Polo was an “extremely dangerous” storm with maximum sustained winds of 165 mph (265 kph), the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said in an update from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft that was sent into the cyclone.

It was the third Category 5 hurricane of the Pacific season, following Genevieve and Lowell earlier this year. Category 5 is the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson scale, reflecting that a storm has maximum sustained winds exceeding 157 mph (253 kph).

Polo was centered 210 miles (338 kilometers) south of Zihuatanejo, Mexico, and nearly stationary over the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday night. The hurricane center said Polo was expected to start a slow but sharp turn northwest during the night and then travel in a generally west-northwestward direction over the next several days.

‘One of the strongest storms ever’ in the Pacific

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in her morning press briefing that experts had indicated that the hurricane was not likely to touch land. Still, the NHC said hurricane-force winds are happening up to 40 miles (65 kilometers) from the storm’s center and tropical storm-force winds up to 105 miles (169 kilometers) away.

The hurricane set residents along Mexico’s Pacific coast on edge once again after being walloped by powerful cyclones a number of times in recent years. Beaches emptied out and dark clouds swirled above choppy seas, while Mexican authorities temporarily suspended classes Tuesday in a number of areas. Mexico’s navy shut down ports in the states of Guerrero and Michoacán and warned civilians and fishermen to take care.

Concepción López Villegas was busily preparing her seaside restaurant for what may come. Strong waves were already lapping at the coastline of her city Lázaro Cárdenas in Michoacán. As men and children watched the stirring waters behind her, López Villegas said she feared powerful waves would destroy the small business she has worked decades to build.

“We’re worried and trying to protect our businesses,” López Villegas said. “And of course, we’re sad because it’s our heritage, our legacy that from one moment to another could be destroyed.”

National Hurricane Center data shows that Polo has reached speeds comparable to only a few hurricanes to form in the region in recent decades, primarily Hurricane Patricia, which reached 215 mph (346 kph) in 2015.

“This is one of the strongest storms ever in the (Pacific) Basin,” said Kristen L. Corbosiero, professor at the University at Albany’s Department of Atmospheric & Environmental Sciences.

The NHC warned that tropical storm conditions were expected along the Pacific coast in Guerrero, Michoacan and Colima states.

Heavy rain could produce flash flooding and mudslides. About 3 to 6 inches (8 to 15 centimeters) of rain was forecast for Guerrero and Michoacán states, with smaller amounts possible for coastal portions of Oaxaca, Colima and Jalisco states.

Rapid intensification of Polo fueled by El Niño

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico issued a weather alert, instructing citizens to avoid water and beaches and to heed warnings from Mexican authorities.

“Even if the storm does not make direct landfall, heavy rain may produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides. Hazardous ocean conditions—intensified by storms—may result in deadly rip currents and rogue waves,” the embassy wrote in a statement.

The rapid intensification of the storm has stunned scientists and authorities alike, with the NHC writing in a report that it was “truly remarkable” how quickly Polo gained strength in the past 24 hours.

Philip Klotzbach, research scientist in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University, attributed the intensification to the weather phenomenon known as El Niño, which has fueled crippling droughts in Mexico and Central America and floods in other parts of the region.

In the Pacific, it has resulted in warmer waters and wind patterns that act as fodder for hurricanes, he said.

“There are all the ingredients that hurricanes need to get really strong really fast,” Klotzbach said.

For many on the Pacific coast, Polo brought back harsh memories of devastating Hurricane Otis in 2023, which tore through nearby port city Acapulco. The destruction and dozens of people killed by the storm were attributed, in part, to the rapid intensification of the hurricane because it gave residents little time to brace themselves, pull their boats onto shore or evacuate.

Tropical Storm Odalys was also in the Pacific Ocean but far from land. The cyclone could become a hurricane sometime Tuesday, the hurricane center said. Odalys had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 kph).

In the Atlantic Ocean, Fay weakened to a remnant. Maximum sustained winds were down to 35 mph (56 kph) Tuesday and the system was far southwest of the Azores.

No Atlantic hurricanes have formed yet this year, and this year has set a record for the longest start to a season without a hurricane. The effects of this year’s El Niño crush storms before they get going.

___

Brooks reported from Atlanta.