Hurricane Lidia reached Category 4 strength on Tuesday afternoon as it barreled towards Mexico’s Pacific coast, where major beach and tourist resorts were bracing for significant downpours, likely flooding as well as imminent hurricane-force winds.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned that Hurricane Lidia was of “extremely dangerous” strength and could strengthen further before making landfall on Tuesday night.
The hurricane was about 110 miles (177 km) southwest of major beach destination Puerto Vallarta, the Miami-based NHC reported in its latest bulletin at 5:30 p.m. ET (2130 GMT).
The center estimated that Lidia was moving east-northeast at 16 miles-per-hour (26 kph) with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (225 kph).
The Puerto Vallarta airport announced on social media it was closing from 4 p.m. (2200 GMT) until 8 a.m. on Wednesday.
The hurricane’s rainfall was estimated at between 4-8 inches (10-20 cm), though some areas could see up to 12 inches through Wednesday, according to an earlier bulletin.
A large swath of western and central Mexico will likely see the brunt of the expected downpour, including Nayarit state, southern portions of Sinaloa state, plus coastal areas in Jalisco state.
“These rains will likely produce flash and urban flooding, along with possible mudslides in areas of higher terrain near the coast,” the NHC predicted.
The strength of Lidia’s winds, however, are expected to weaken rapidly after it moves inland.
Further south, Tropical Storm Max left two dead and at least two injured in the state of Guerrero following heavy rains, according to local media reports.
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