Hurricane Erick has formed in the Pacific. It could bring rain, humidity to California
The hurricane center said Wednesday morning the storm, the second hurricane of the Pacific season, was located about 160 miles south-southeast of Puerto Angel, Mexico with maximum sustained winds of about 75 mph with higher gusts.
Hurricane center forecasters said "rapid strengthening" is expected Wednesday, and the system may reach "major hurricane strength" when it approaches the coast of southern Mexico Thursday. The center of Erick is expected to approach the southern coast of Mexico late Wednesday and move inland or be near the coast on Thursday.
Forecasters said Erick's wind speeds could reach 111 mph if strengthening occurs as forecast, which would make it a Category 3 hurricane on the Shaffir Simpson wind speed scale.
Hurricane Erick, like most Eastern Pacific hurricanes, is unlikely to directly impact California in terms of strong winds or a direct landfall. However, according to forecasters, it could still indirectly affect Southern California by causing high surf, rip tides, humid conditions, and sometimes thunderstorms in inland or mountain areas.
Erick is forecast to produce rainfall totals of 8 to 16 inches, with maximum totals of 20 inches, across the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Guerrero. The rainfall will lead to "life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain," the hurricane center said Wednesday. Additionally, rainfall totals between 3 to 8 inches are expected across the Mexican states of Chiapas, Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco.
The hurricane center said swells generated by Erick are expected to begin affecting the southern coast of Mexico later Wednesday, and these swells are "likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions."
A hurricane warning is in effect for Acapulco to Puerto Angel, while a hurricane watch is in effect for west of Acapulco to Tecpan de Galeana, as well as east of Puerto Angel to Bahias de Huatulco. A tropical storm warning is in effect for east of Puerto Angel to Salina Cruz.
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This forecast track shows the most likely path of the center of the storm. It does not illustrate the full width of the storm or its impacts, and the center of the storm is likely to travel outside the cone up to 33% of the time.
Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest-performing models to help make its forecasts.
Hurricanes are born in the tropics, above warm water. Clusters of thunderstorms can develop over the ocean when water temperatures exceed 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If conditions are right, the clusters swirl into a storm known as a tropical wave or tropical depression.
A tropical depression becomes a named tropical storm once its sustained wind speeds reaches 39 miles per hour. When its winds reach 74 mph, the storm officially becomes a hurricane.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Hurricane Erick forms in the Pacific: See path, California impacts
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