The storm, which became a hurricane on Thursday night, had maximum sustained winds of 260km/h as it moved towards the northwest at just under 20km/h.
Patricia was last located about 320km southwest of the port of Manzanillo, where a hurricane warning had been issued. A hurricane warning was also in effect for the tourist resort of Puerto Vallarta.
The storm could gain more strength before making landfall in the hurricane warning area by Friday afternoon or evening, the Miami-based hurricane centre said.
The US government issued an advisory urging its nationals to steer clear of beaches and rough seas, and to take shelter as instructed by Mexican officials.
Mexican emergency officials began to prepare shelters and declared a state of emergency for 56 municipalities in the storm's projected path, in the states of Colima, Nayarit and Jalisco.
A hurricane warning was in effect for the Mexican coast from San Blas to Punta San Telmo. A broader area was under hurricane watch, tropical storm warning, or tropical storm watch.
The NHC warned that preparations should be rushed to completion, saying the storm could cause coastal flooding, destructive waves and flash floods...
aljazeera.com
23/10/15
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Related:
El poderoso huracán Patricia, en la máxima categoría de la escala Saffir-Simpson con vientos sostenidos de 325 kilómetros por hora, “es el más intenso de la historia” registrado en el Pacífico frente a las costas de México, alertó el gobierno de Enrique Peña...
ReplyDelete“Es el más intenso de la historia, entre los huracanes registrados en México no existe un antecedente de la magnitud de Patricia”, advirtió este viernes el director general de la Comisión Nacional del Agua, Roberto Ramírez de la Parra.
Además, el meteoro que registra furiosas “rachas de hasta 400 kilómetros por hora, y se intensificará aún más antes de tocar tierra” al atardece de este viernes, cuando las bandas externas del remolino del ciclón choquen contra las costas del estado de Jalisco, pronosticó el miembro del Comité de Emergencia Nacional.
El alto funcionario federal advirtió que el gigantesco fenómeno climático se desplaza hacia el nor-noroeste a una velocidad de 19 kilómetros por hora, enfilando hacia chocar con tierra al atardecer de este viernes entre las 16.00 y 18.00 horas (22.00 GM del viernes y 02.00 GMT del sábado).
El presidente Enrique Peña encabezó este viernes una reunión de emergencia con los integrantes de su Gabinete, a quienes instruyó “acciones para prevenir los efectos del huracán Patricia, ante la inminente entrada del fenómeno natural a territorio nacional”, sobre todo en los estados costeros de Jalisco, Colima y Nayarit, frente al Pacífico.
“El objetivo primordial es cuidar la vida y la integridad de la población”, dijo el mandatario en una declaración escrita emitida por la Presidencia, al tiempo que canceló sus actividades públicas programadas para este viernes............http://sptnkne.ws/WYY
23/10/15
Hurricane Patricia, one of strongest ever storms, set to hit Mexico...
ReplyDeleteMexico scrambled on Friday to prepare as Hurricane Patricia, one of the strongest storms ever recorded, bore down on its Pacific Coast, prompting the evacuation of thousands of tourists and residents and a mad rush for emergency supplies.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the Category 5 storm was the strongest ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere, and the World Meteorological Organization compared it to 2013's Typhoon Haiyan, which killed thousands in the Philippines.
The storm was expected to make landfall on Friday afternoon or early evening, the NHC added. In its path lies a patchwork of exclusive getaways favored by tech billionaires and pop stars, as well as package vacation resorts, a major cargo port and modest fishing villages.
Ramping up their warnings as the storm drew closer, Mexican officials said the unprecedented hurricane could wreak catastrophic damage.
"The hurricane is so strong that it could cross the country's two Sierra Madre mountain ranges, the two most mountainous regions, and come out the other side of the country along the Gulf of Mexico and head to the United States," said Roberto Ramirez, the head of federal water agency, Conagua.
Loudspeakers along the shore of the resort of Puerto Vallarta, popular with U.S. and Canadian tourists, blared orders to evacuate hotels as a light rain fell and a slight breeze ruffled palm trees. The streets emptied as police sirens wailed......reuters.com
23/10/15