Otis made landfall near the resort city of Acapulco on the southern Pacific Coast of Mexico as a Category 5 hurricane, bringing record winds and rainfall that could create a “nightmare scenario” of flooding and mudslides, forecasters said early Wednesday.
Hurricane Otis’s maximum sustained winds had grown to 165 miles per hour with stronger gusts at about 12:25 a.m. local time, when it made landfall, the National Hurricane Center said.
The storm formed in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday, became a Category 1 hurricane midday Tuesday and “explosively intensified” in a matter of hours, becoming the strongest storm ever to hit this part of Mexico, forecasters said.
Otis threatens a coast dotted with fishing villages and beach resorts as they gear up for their peak winter season.
Along its path lies Acapulco, a large port city and a popular tourist destination home to more than 852,000 people, according to the Mexican government.
Persons:
Otis, “
Organizations:
National Hurricane Center
Locations:
Acapulco, Pacific Coast, Mexico