Hurricane Polo Slams Baja California with 115 mph Winds — SkimNews
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- Hurricane Polo, a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds near 115 mph, is lashing Mexico's northern Pacific coast and expected to make landfall Monday evening over Baja California Sur, a region home to the resort destination of Los Cabos
- The National Hurricane Center warned that life-threatening winds and flash floods had begun hitting portions of the region, with conditions set to deteriorate quickly and the storm's eye forecast to push into southern Sonora by Tuesday morning
- Laura Velázquez, national coordinator of Mexico's Civil Protection Agency, said travel will be halted in the landfall zone and ports closed, while Governor Víctor Manuel Castro Cosío of Baja California Sur ordered schools shut and opened temporary shelters
- Federal authorities deployed thousands of navy and army personnel with specialized machinery, and in Cabo San Lucas authorities restricted beach access and some restaurants closed ahead of the storm
- Even after Polo dissipates, the NHC said its remnants could produce strong gusty winds across southern New Mexico and western Texas, while forecasters tied the storm's intensity to unusually warm Pacific waters driven by the El Niño climate phenomenon
Why it matters: A major hurricane bearing down on a heavily touristed stretch of Mexican coastline forces the federal government to mobilize thousands of troops and trigger travel shutdowns in Baja California Sur, with the NHC projecting that Polo's wind field will remain disruptive even after landfall as far north as New Mexico and Texas.
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