Hurricane Patricia, a Category 5 storm, made landfall on Mexico’s Pacific coast some 40 miles north of Manzanillo on the evening of Friday October 23.
The storm was described by meteorologists as ‘the strongest on record’, but concerns about catastrophic damage and casualties did not come to pass and Patricia was reclassified as a Tropical Storm by the next day as it continued its path north-northeast, with its residues causing heavy rains for affected areas. No casualties or widespread damage have been reported in any of the states affected by the hurricane.
As a precaution, tourists staying in Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo were evacuated, toll booths on highways in the affected regions were opened-up to allow free passage of road traffic, and four regional airports were closed with all flights cancelled; flight operations resumed the following day.
September and October are the months when sea temperatures in the north Pacific are at their warmest, and so this is the height of the Hurricane Season in Mexico.
See Also: Climates and Weather in Mexico
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