Tropical Storm Flossie strengthens, hurricane warning issued for Mexico's Pacific coast
MEXICO CITY — Tropical Storm Flossie continued to gain steam off Mexico's southwestern Pacific coast on Monday afternoon and was projected to turn into a hurricane overnight. Meanwhile, the remnants of what was Tropical Storm Barry dumped rain on eastern Mexico.
Flossie strengthened with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (105 km/h). It was centered about 155 miles (250 kilometres) southwest of Zihuatanejo and was moving northwest at 10 mph.
Mexico's government issued a tropical storm warning along the southwestern coast from Punta San Telmo to Playa Perula.
A tropical storm watch remained in effect for the southwest coast from Zihuatanejo to Cabo Corrientes. A watch means tropical storm conditions are possible in the area within two days.
Flossie is expected to rapidly intensify into a hurricane late Monday or early Tuesday, then skirt the coast for a few days. While its center is forecast to remain offshore, moderate rain was likely in parts of Oaxaca, Guerrero, Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco through early next week.
Meanwhile, the remnants of Barry were bringing heavy rain to Mexico's Gulf coast after it came ashore as a tropical depression south of Tampico with maximum sustained winds of 30 mph, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.
____
The Associated Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Summer celebrations meet closed beaches and warnings on US East Coast due to Hurricane Erin
RODANTHE, N.C. (AP) — From Florida to New England, people trying to enjoy the last hurrahs of summer along the coast were met with rip-current warnings, closed beaches and in some cases already treacherous waves as Hurricane Erin inched closer Wednesday. While forecasters remain confident that the center of the monster storm will stay far offshore, the outer edges are expected to bring high winds, large swells and life-threatening rip currents into Friday. But the biggest swells along the East Coast could come as early as Wednesday. New York City closed its beaches to swimming on Wednesday and Thursday, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul ordered three state beaches on Long Island to prohibit swimming through Thursday. Several New Jersey beaches also will be temporarily off-limits, while some towns in Delaware have cut off ocean access. Off Massachusetts, Nantucket Island could see waves of more than 10 feet (3 meters) later this week. But the biggest threat is along the barrier islands of North Carolina's Outer Banks, where evacuations have been ordered. Erin has become an unusually large and deceptively worrisome storm, with its tropical storm winds stretching 230 miles (370 kilometers) from its core. Forecasters expect it will grow larger in size as it moves through the Atlantic and curls north. On Tuesday it lashed the Turks and Caicos Islands, where government services were suspended and residents were ordered to stay home, along with parts of the Bahamas before its expected turn toward Bermuda. Tropical storm watches were issued for Virginia and North Carolina as well as Bermuda. Erin lost some strength from previous days and was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (161 kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. It was about 540 miles (870 kilometers) south-southeast of North Carolina's Cape Hatteras. On the Outer Banks, Erin's storm surge could swamp roads with waves of 15 feet (4.6 meters). Mandatory evacuations were ordered on Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands. More than 1,800 people had left Ocracoke by ferry since Monday. North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein warned coastal residents to be prepared to evacuate and declared a state of emergency Tuesday. Bulldozers shored up the dunes, and trucks from the local power company on Ocracoke were on hand to respond to downed wires. Some side roads already saw some flooding on Hatteras, and the owners of a pier removed a few planks, hoping the storm surge would pass through without tearing it up. Most residents decided to stay even though memories are still fresh of Hurricane Dorian in 2019, when 7 feet (2.1 meters) of water swamped Ocracoke, county commissioner Randal Mathews said. Tom Newsom, who runs fishing charters on Hatteras, said has lived there almost 40 years and never evacuated. He was not going to this time either. Comparing this hurricane to others he has seen, he called this one a 'nor'easter on steroids.' The Outer Banks' thin stretch of low-lying barrier islands jutting into the Atlantic are increasingly vulnerable to storm surges. There are concerns that parts of the main highway could be washed out, leaving some routes impassible for days. And dozens of beach homes already worn down from chronic beach erosion and the loss of protective dunes could be at risk, said David Hallac, superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Farther south, no evacuations were ordered but some beach access points were closed with water levels up to 3 feet (1 meter) over normal high tides expected for several days. Climate scientists say Atlantic hurricanes are now much more likely to rapidly intensify into powerful and catastrophic storms fueled by warmer oceans. Two years ago Hurricane Lee grew with surprising speed while barreling offshore through the Atlantic, unleashing violent storms and rip currents. ___ Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press journalists Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina; Gary Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina; Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia; Hallie Golden in Seattle; Leah Willingham in Boston; Safiyah Riddle in Montgomery, Alabama; and Julie Walker in New York contributed.
Winnipeg Free Press
6 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
It's the time of year for Cape Verde hurricanes, the longest and most powerful storms
They are the hurricanes of legend, the bowling balls that cross the entire Atlantic Ocean, menaced ships of yore and make the long, curved lines on the hurricane charts. Cape Verde storms, named for the group of islands about 450 miles (725 kilometers) off the west coast of Africa, typically form from clusters of thunderstorms that move off the continent and into the Atlantic. With thousands of miles of ocean water above the 80-degree Fahrenheit (27-degree Celsius) temperature needed to fuel hurricanes, Cape Verde storms are some of the most dangerous that threaten North America. About 85% of all major hurricanes — Category 3 and higher — start out there, according to the National Hurricane Center. 'They are the media stars and certainly get a lot of attention because you can track them for a long time,' said Jeff Masters, a meteorologist for Yale Climate Connections. But they also are a rare threat. Less than one out of every 10 of the storms crash into the U.S. The rest either fall apart or are curved out to sea by the north and east steering winds that normally prevail over the Atlantic. Now is the time to turn to the east Conditions need to be just right for Cape Verde storms to form and grow, keeping them mostly confined to August and September. Hurricane Erin is a Cape Verde storm. The National Hurricane Center is watching two more clusters of storms to the east of Erin that could develop into tropical storms. But the atmosphere is too complex to know how strong those storms can be if they develop or whether any of them will threaten the U.S. Forecasters begin to lose confidence in their ability to predict the future of any specific storms more than a week out. It takes at least 10 days for a potential hurricane to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Warn weather and light winds help Cape Verde storms grow Cape Verde storms start over Africa where the hot dry air in the Sahara and the hot humid air over the Gulf of Guinea clash and create clusters of thunderstorms that move off the continent. The warm water is the first ingredient. Hurricanes also thrive with light winds above them that won't blow the thunderstorms away from the center. 'They are the strongest because they have the most time to develop. The other storms can crash into land too early,' Masters said.) Researchers have spent the past several years studying the ocean and atmosphere in the far eastern Atlantic to get a better idea of why some storms form and some don't. In recent years, scientists have realized that dry air and dust from the Sahara in Africa blown into the Atlantic from the east can lessen the high humidity hurricanes need and inhibit their development. The dust can travel all the way across the ocean and settle on cars and windows on the U.S. East Coast. 'They travel about a mile above the surface, the winds are very strong, and the air is dry and hot. That's a trifecta that suppresses hurricane activity,' Jason Dunion, a scientist at the University of Miami's Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies told the university. 1 or 2 hurricanes a year are Cape Verde storms Some years may not see a Cape Verde storm at all. Some can see as many as four or five. But on average about one or two hurricanes a year are classified as Cape Verde storms, according to the National Hurricane Center. And they aren't the only storms to hit the U.S. The Weather Channel analyzed hurricanes since 1995 and found only nine of the 60 that struck the U.S. were the ones that track all the way across the Atlantic. The storms you remember The list of famous Cape Verde hurricanes has a lot of overlap with the list of the most memorable, powerful and deadliest hurricanes. There is the 1900 Galveston Hurricane that killed about 8,000 people in Texas and the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane that killed 2,500 in Florida. In more recent times, hurricanes Donna in 1960 in Florida, Hugo in 1989 in South Carolina, Andrew in 1992 in Florida, Ivan in Grand Cayman, Alabama and Florida in 2004, Ike in Texas in 2008, Irma in Cuba, Puerto Rico and Florida in 2017 and Florence in North Carolina in 2018 were all Cape Verde storms.
Global News
12 hours ago
- Global News
Hurricane Erin approaches U.S., prompting warnings from Florida to New York
Hurricane Erin chugged slowly toward the eastern U.S. Tuesday, stirring up treacherous waves that already have led to dozens of water rescues and shut down beaches along the coast in the midst of summer's last hurrah. While forecasters remain confident the center of the monster storm will remain far offshore, the outer edges are likely to bring damaging tropical-force winds, large swells and life-threatening rip currents into Friday. Warnings about rip currents have been posted from Florida to the New England coast with New York City closing its beaches to swimming on Wednesday and Thursday. Several Long Island and New Jersey beaches also will be off-limits. 'Enjoy the shore, enjoy this beautiful weather but stay out of the water,' New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Tuesday. Off Massachusetts, Nantucket Island could see waves of more than 10 feet (3 meters) later this week. But the biggest threat is along the barrier islands of North Carolina's Outer Banks where evacuations have been ordered. One town asked residents to secure their trash cans so they don't float or blow away. Story continues below advertisement Erin has become an unusually large and deceptively worrisome storm while moving through the Caribbean, with its tropical storm winds stretching 230 miles (370 kilometers) from its core. Forecasters expect it will grow larger in size as it moves through the Atlantic and curls north. 1:49 Hurricane Erin intensifies to Category 4 storm as it moves towards U.S. East Coast It continued to lash the Turks and Caicos Islands on Tuesday, where government services were suspended a day earlier and residents were ordered to stay home, along with parts of the Bahamas before its expected turn toward Bermuda and the U.S. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy By Tuesday, Erin had lost some strength from previous days and dropped to a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (170 kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. It was about 615 miles (990 kilometers) south-southeast of North Carolina's Cape Hatteras. Tropical storm watches were issued for Virginia and North Carolina as well as Bermuda. Story continues below advertisement Rough ocean conditions already have been seen along the U.S. coast — at least 60 swimmers were rescued from rip currents Monday at Wrightsville Beach, near Wilmington, North Carolina. The biggest swells along the East Coast are expected over the coming two days. Climate scientists say Atlantic hurricanes are now much more likely to rapidly intensify into powerful and catastrophic storms fueled by warmer oceans. Two years ago, Hurricane Lee grew with surprising speed while barreling offshore through the Atlantic, unleashing violent storms and rip currents. 0:38 Hurricane Erin explodes in strength to Category 5 storm On the Outer Banks, Erin's storm surge could swamp roads with waves of 15 feet (4.6 meters). Mandatory evacuations were ordered on Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands. More than 1,800 people had left Ocracoke by ferry since Monday. North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein warned residents along the coast to be prepared in case they need to evacuate and declared a state of emergency on Tuesday. Bulldozers shored up the dunes, and on Hatteras, the owners of a pier removed a few planks, hoping the storm surge will pass through without tearing up the structure. Story continues below advertisement Most residents decided to stay even though memories are still fresh of Hurricane Dorian in 2019 when 7 feet (2.1 meters) of water swamped Ocracoke, said Randal Mathews, who serves as a county commissioner. Tom Newsom, who run fishing charters on Hatteras, said he's lived there almost 40 years and never evacuated, and wasn't going to this time either. Comparing this hurricane to others he has seen, he called this one a 'nor'easter on steroids.' 2:04 'Anxiety-inducing' concerns about U.S. hurricane season after Trump guts FEMA Bryan Philips, who also lives on the island, said he'd evacuate if they were getting a direct hit. He expects the roads will be open by the weekend to make sure one of the last summer weekends isn't lost. 'That's their main concern: getting tourists back on the island as soon as possible,' said Philips. Story continues below advertisement The Outer Banks' thin stretch of low-lying barrier islands that jut into the Atlantic are increasingly vulnerable to storm surges. There are concerns that parts of the main highway could be washed out, leaving some routes impassible for days. Farther south, no evacuations had been ordered, but some beach access points were closed as forecasts call for water levels up to 3 feet (1 meter) over normal high tides for several days. Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press journalists Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina; Gary Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina; Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia; Hallie Golden in Seattle; Leah Willingham in Boston; Safiyah Riddle in Montgomery, Alabama; and Julie Walker in New York contributed to this report.
