Hurricane Trudy strengthens to Category 2 as it approaches Mexico coast

MIAMI (AP) — Trudy strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane as it moved toward Mexico ’s southwestern and west-central Pacific coast on Saturday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

A hurricane warning was in effect from Manzanillo in Colima state to Cabo Corrientes in Jalisco. The latest NHC data showed the Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) and was about 175 miles (280 kilometers) south of Cabo Corrientes in Jalisco state and 100 miles (160 kilometers) south-southwest of Manzanillo, moving northwest at 10 mph (17 kph).

Meanwhile, Typhoon Champi strengthened into a Category 4 Super Typhoon as it moved past Guam.

Trudy’s center was expected to approach the Mexican coast on Saturday and pass near it into Sunday. After the latest warning, Mexico’s government issued a tropical storm warning for Las Islas Marias and discontinued a similar warning for its coast south of Lazaro Cardenas.

The Mexican navy urged mariners and coastal residents to exercise extreme caution because of high waves, heavy rain and the risk of rising rivers, flooding and landslides in vulnerable areas.

Colima authorities said the risks remained low, but warned that heavy rainfall could cause damage because the ground was already saturated by successive storms along the Pacific coast.

Trudy was expected to bring 4-8 inches (10-20 centimeters) of rain through the weekend, with isolated totals of around 15 inches (38 centimeters).

Also in the Pacific, Champi strengthened into a Category 4 Super Typhoon with 150 mph (240 kph) sustained winds as it moved west-northwest at 16 mph (26 kph). At 1 a.m. GMT it was 95 miles (153 kilometers) west-southwest of Guam, according to the U.S. National Weather Service.

The storm was forecast to pass south of Guam early Sunday local time and continue intensifying through the day. Guam and Rota remained under a typhoon warning, while Tinian and Saipan were under a tropical storm warning and typhoon watch.

The governors of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands both requested emergency disaster declarations on Friday.

On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump approved an emergency declaration for Guam authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all federal disaster relief efforts. FEMA announced that federal disaster assistance is available for the territory of Guam to supplement local response efforts following Typhoon Champi.

Airports, harbors and some health facilities in the territories were closed. Resources were unlikely to reach the islands for three to five days, according to Saturday updates from the FEMA.

The territories are still recovering from Super Typhoons Sinlaku and Bavi, which struck in April and July, respectively.