This satellite image provided by NOAA on Tuesday shows Hurricane Otis approaching Mexico's Pacific coast near Acapulco. NOAA via AP
ACAPULCO, Mexico — Hurricane Otis strengthened from a tropical storm to a dangerous Category 5 hurricane in a matter of hours Tuesday as it approached Mexico's southern Pacific coast, where it was forecast to make landfall near the resort of Acapulco early Wednesday causing catastrophic damage.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Otis has maximum sustained winds of 160 mph (260 kph) late Tuesday evening. It was centered about 55 miles (90 kilometers) south-southeast of Acapulco and moving north-northwest at 9 mph (15 kph).
A hurricane warning was in effect from Punta Maldonado to Zihuatanejo. A hurricane watch was is in effect from Lagunas de Chacahua to Punta Maldonado
Otis is forecast to remain a Category 5 hurricane through landfall but rapid weakening is then forecast due to the higher terrain of Mexico. Otis will likely dissipate over southern Mexico on Wednesday night.
In Acapulco, people hurried home as rain began to pelt the resort and winds picked up, driving tourists from the beach.
The Guerrero state government said it was preparing 396 shelters in anticipation of families being driven from their homes by wind damage or surging waters.
Mexico's army and navy deployed more than 8,000 troops to the area with specialized equipment to aid in rescues. Authorities closed Acapulco's port, home to some 300 fishing boats.
Otis was expected to dump five to 10 inches (13 to 25 centimeters) of rain on Guerrero, with as much as 15 inches (38 centimeters) possible in some areas. That raised the possibility of mudslides and flashfloods in Guerrero's steep mountainous terrain.
The National Hurricane Center considers a storm to rapidly intensify if it increases wind speed by 35 mph (46 kph) in 24 hours. With warmer oceans serving as fuel, Atlantic hurricanes are now more than twice as likely as before to rapidly intensify from wimpy minor hurricanes to powerful and catastrophic, a study by study Andra Garner, a climate scientist at Rowan University in New Jersey, said Thursday.
In 2020, a record year for hurricanes and the last year of Garner's study, six storms rapidly intensified that much. Hannah, Laura, Sally, Teddy, Gamma and Delta. Since then, there have been several rapid intensifying and deadly storms, including 2021's Ida, 2022's Ian and 2023's Idalia.
In the Atlantic, Hurricane Tammy continued moving northeastward over open water with winds of 85 mph (140 kph) after sweeping through the Lesser Antilles over the weekend. Tammy was located about 570 miles (915 kilometers) south-southeast of Bermuda. The storm was expected to become a powerful extratropical cyclone by Thursday, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
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October 25, 2023 at 11:19AM
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Otis rapidly strengthens to a major hurricane as it nears Acapulco - NPR
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