Hurricane Erick makes landfall in Mexico's western Oaxaca as Category 3 storm that could bring "life-threatening" flooding
Hurricane Erick — the fifth named storm of the 2025 Eastern Pacific hurricane season — made landfall as a Category 3 storm in southern Mexico's Oaxaca on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said shortly after 7:30 a.m. ET. Despite the downgrade from Category 4, the hurricane center has warned that the storm's strong winds and rain are expected to cause "life-threatening flooding and mudslides."
Earlier Thursday, Erick had grown to "an extremely dangerous" Category 4 with 140 mph winds after undergoing rapid intensification. It made landfall in the western part of Oaxaca, just east of Punta Maldonado, with sustained winds nearly 125 mph and higher gusts. Those hurricane-force winds extend 25 miles from its center, with tropical storm-force winds extending up to 90 miles.
Erick is the first major hurricane of the Eastern Pacific hurricane season, which runs from May 15 to Nov. 30. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
Major Hurricane #Erick makes landfall in extreme western Oaxaca, Mexico just east of Punta Maldonado. The estimated maximum sustained winds are near 125 mph (205 km/h). Visit https://t.co/Oy8uoeRKme for details. pic.twitter.com/qZrbS74XM0 — NHC Pacific (@NHC_Pacific) June 19, 2025
"Erick is expected to rapidly weaken over the mountains of Mexico," the hurricane center said after it made landfall, "and the system is likely to dissipate tonight or early Friday."
According to NOAA's National Weather Service, Category 3 hurricanes with this wind strength can cause "devastating damage," and can lead to power outages lasting several days to weeks.
A hurricane warning is in effect for Acapulco to Puerto Angel and a watch has been issued from west of Acapulco to Tecpan de Galeana.
Erick's categorization on the Saffir-Simpson scale only accounts for wind, and not the elements that tend to be the most deadly in cyclones.
"Water hazards — storm surge and inland flooding — have historically been the leading causes of loss of life during hurricanes," NOAA warns. "Hurricanes can also bring strong winds, tornadoes, rough surf, and rip currents."
Erick is forecast to produce between 8 to 12 inches of rain, with maximum totals of 16 inches across the states of Oaxaca and Guerrero, the National Hurricane Center said, leading to "life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain." Chiapas, Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco are expected to see between 2 and 4 inches of rain.
"Dangerous, life-threatening" storm surge, which is a rise in sea level during the storm, is also expected to create coastal flooding near and to the west of where the center of the storm hits land," the center said, and be accompanied by "large and destructive waves."
Acapulco, an area that was devastated by Hurricane Otis in October 2023, is among the areas facing impacts. Otis hit the city as a Category 5 and left dozens of people dead after its wind speeds increased by 115 mph in a single day — the second-fastest recorded rate in modern times, according to the National Hurricane Center.
"We are left with nothing," one woman said. "Everything is damaged."
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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NOAA tracking 3 tropical waves. Hurricane Erick rapidly intensifying
