Simon weakens to Category 3 as floods hit Mexico’s coast

Hurricane Simon weakened from a Category 4 to a Category 3 storm on Sunday, Oct. 11, as it crept northwest along Mexico’s Pacific coast without making landfall, flooding homes in Manzanillo and forcing ports and airports to close.

Reuters reported that Simon’s maximum sustained winds had dropped to 125 mph (about 205 km/h) by 6 p.m., down from about 140 mph (220 km/h) at midday, according to the Rio Times. Forecasters still expect up to 76 centimetres of rain in parts of Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco, the states that include Manzanillo and Puerto Vallarta, a winter destination for many Canadians.

The storm was about 110 miles (177 km) west-northwest of Manzanillo and moving northwest at 5 mph (8 km/h), parallel to the coast, Reuters reported. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its advisory: “Additional weakening is forecast but Simon is still expected to be a strong hurricane.”

Cecilia Palomar, a Manzanillo resident, told Reuters her home had flooded. “The whole house flooded,” she said, adding that her furniture got wet.

Mexican authorities have put 28 municipalities in Jalisco and Colima under the highest cyclone alert level and 93 others under a high alert, Reuters reported. President Claudia Sheinbaum urged coastal residents in Jalisco, Colima, Nayarit and Michoacán to stay indoors. Emergency shelters were opened and non-essential activity was suspended.

The Rio Times, citing Mexican navy and civil-protection reports, said nine ports were closed on Sunday, including Puerto Vallarta, Manzanillo, San Blas and Lázaro Cárdenas, and that six more harbours were closed to small vessels. Both Puerto Vallarta’s airport and Manzanillo’s were shut, the Rio Times said, though the Manzanillo closure was announced only until 2 p.m. and it was unclear whether it would be extended. Reuters also reported that Puerto Vallarta’s airport temporarily closed.

The Rio Times put the number of people evacuated or sheltered at 579 across Jalisco, Colima and Nayarit, citing state figures, but noted that the Jalisco numbers could overlap, so the total is not firmly established. It also reported that the federal Security Ministry had deployed 22,589 personnel in the four states. Neither Reuters nor the Rio Times reported any deaths as of Sunday afternoon, and officials had not released damage or power-outage figures.

By early Monday, Oct. 12, CBS News reported Simon was still a Category 3 storm with sustained winds of 115 mph (185 km/h), about 50 miles (80 km) southwest of Cabo Corrientes and moving northwest at about 5 mph (8 km/h). It said no damage, deaths or injuries had been reported in its article, and that hurricane-force winds extended up to 15 miles (24 km) from the centre.

Rain remains the main threat. Reuters said another 50 to 100 millimetres is forecast for parts of Colima, Jalisco, Nayarit and Sinaloa through early Thursday, with isolated amounts of up to 200 millimetres more. Storm totals of up to 30 inches (76 centimetres) are possible in Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco, with a risk of life-threatening flooding and mudslides, as well as dangerous storm surge and destructive waves.

The forecast track adds uncertainty. Reuters said Simon is expected to move farther offshore on Monday, Oct. 12, then turn back toward Mexico’s coast on Wednesday, Oct. 14. That is a change from Saturday’s expectation of a landfall near Puerto Vallarta, as Canada News Media reported when Simon reached Category 4.

For Canadians, the main questions are flights and hotel stays. WestJet had issued a tropical storm advisory covering Puerto Vallarta travel from Oct. 9 to 12, as Canada News Media reported. Neither source read for this report mentioned Canadians affected, and Canada News Media found no Global Affairs Canada statement specific to Simon. The Government of Canada’s advice for the region is on travel.gc.ca, and travellers can register with the Registration of Canadians Abroad service.

This story is developing. Canada News Media did not read the hurricane centre’s advisory directly, and the wind speeds and positions above come from the two reports cited, which were issued at different times on Oct. 11.

Via Reuters (as published by the Spokesman-Review), the Rio Times and CBS News.

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