Hurricane Polo rockets to Category 4 off Mexico, nearing Category 5

Hurricane Polo reached Category 4 strength off Mexico’s Pacific coast on Tuesday and is “approaching Category 5 strength”, the US National Hurricane Center said.

Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 150 mph (240 km/h), with higher gusts, and the minimum central pressure fell to 935 mb, according to the 3am CST (0900 UTC) advisory. Continued rapid intensification is forecast, and Polo could become a Category 5 hurricane later today.

At that time, Polo was centred about 215 miles (345 km) south of Zihuatanejo and 345 miles (555 km) south-southeast of Manzanillo, moving east-southeast at 6 mph. The NHC said a sharp turn toward the northwest was expected tonight and on Wednesday, bringing the storm’s core near the southwestern Mexico coast over the next few days, although it is forecast to remain offshore.

A tropical storm watch is in effect for the coast from Tecpan de Galeana to Manzanillo, with tropical storm conditions possible by early Wednesday. Mexico’s meteorological service has issued alerts for several Pacific states, including Guerrero, where Acapulco — devastated by Hurricane Otis in 2023 — was on alert, AFP reported.

Polo is expected to dump 4 to 8 inches of rain, with isolated totals up to 12 inches, across coastal Guerrero and Michoacán through Thursday, bringing life-threatening flooding and mudslides in steep terrain. Coastal Oaxaca, Colima and Jalisco could see 3 to 6 inches. Farther west, Tropical Storm Odalys was far from land but could become a hurricane by midweek, the Associated Press reported.