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Hurricane Erick formed in the Eastern Pacific Ocean on Wednesday morning about 160 miles south-southeast of Puerto Angel, Mexico, and is expected to rapidly intensify before making landfall, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
The NHC said that Erick had reached 75 mph in its latest update, officially designating it as a hurricane. Erick is currently a Category 1 hurricane.
Once a tropical storm’s winds reach 74 mph, it is called a hurricane and maintains the same name it had when it was a tropical storm.
Erick is the fifth named storm of this year’s Eastern Pacific hurricane season, and it could be the first named storm in either the Atlantic or Eastern Pacific basins to make landfall.
Erick forecast to rapidly intensify before landfall
The NHC said that Erick is expected to rapidly intensify before making landfall. Rapid intensification occurs when a tropical cyclone’s maximum sustained winds increase by at least 35 mph within 24 hours.
The NHC said that Erick had reached 75 mph in its latest update, officially designating it as a hurricane. APErick could reach major hurricane strength if it intensifies faster than current forecasts show. A major hurricane is defined as a Category 3, 4 or 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.
It is expected to approach the coast of southern Mexico by Wednesday night and move inland or be near the coast Thursday, according to the NHC.
Life-threatening flash flooding possible along southern coast of Mexico
Mexico’s government has issued a Hurricane Warning from Puerto Angel to Acapulco, with other tropical weather alerts issued both south and north of the expected landfall location along the country’s southern coast.
The NHC also warned that storm surge is expected to produce life-threatening coastal flooding as early as Wednesday night; swells and rip currents are also expected at that time.
Mexico’s government has issued a Hurricane Warning from Puerto Angel to Acapulco. REUTERS“Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion,” wrote the NHC in a Wednesday morning outlook, regarding areas within the Hurricane Watch.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo took to X on Tuesday to ask residents to be aware of the latest conditions and alerts ahead of the storm making landfall.
Heavy rain from Hurricane Erick could produce mudslides
The NHC forecast 8-16 inches of rain will fall close to the coast. Localized pockets of up to 20 inches of rain are possible in the states of Oaxaca and Guerrero.
The NHC warned that the heavy rain could produce life-threatening mudslides along the mountainous terrain that hugs Mexico’s southern coast.
The Eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 to Nov. 30.
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