Hurricane Lorena, one of two hurricanes in the Pacific Ocean, is forecast to bring heavy rain and potentially life-threatening flash floods to Mexico’s Baja California peninsula later this week.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center reported that Lorena reached hurricane strength early Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. While rapid strengthening is expected overnight, the storm is projected to weaken quickly starting Thursday and could be downgraded to a tropical storm by Friday.
As of early Wednesday, Lorena was located about 120 miles south-southwest of Cabo San Lucas, moving northwest at 14 mph. Its hurricane-force winds extended up to 10 miles from the center, with tropical-storm-force winds reaching as far as 60 miles.
The storm’s center is expected to move parallel to the peninsula’s west coast through Thursday before approaching the coastline Thursday night and Friday. In response, the Mexican government has issued a tropical storm warning for the western coast of Baja California Sur from Santa Fe to Cabo San Lazaro, with a tropical storm watch in effect for areas further north.
Forecasters warn that the storm could drop five to ten inches of rain, with isolated totals up to 15 inches, across parts of the region through Friday, creating a significant risk of dangerous flash floods and mudslides.
Meanwhile, a second, more powerful storm, Hurricane Kiko, is churning in the Pacific but poses no threat to land. Kiko is a Category 2 hurricane with 105 mph winds and is expected to strengthen into a major hurricane later Wednesday. It was located approximately 1,700 miles east of Hilo, Hawaii, moving west at 7 mph.
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