Mexican authorities urged residents of Baja California Sur to prepare for the imminent arrival of major Hurricane Polo, warning of deadly winds and flash floods.
Restaurant and store owners in the small coastal towns of Loreto and Ciudad Constitucion boarded up doors and windows overnight to protect their businesses, in anticipation of worsening weather conditions.
Polo is expected to make landfall in the state of Baja California Sur in the evening, then move inland into southern Sonora today morning, the NHC said in a bulletin.
Access to beaches has been restricted and maritime activities suspended in high-risk areas in the state, Laura Velazquez, head of Mexico’s civil protection agency, said during Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s morning news conference.
Velazquez asked citizens to remain calm as power and internet services will most likely be out for a few hours, until midnight.
Despite weakening slightly, Polo is expected to make landfall as a dangerous Category 3 hurricane, private forecaster AccuWeather said. It noted the storm was set to hit a sparsely populated area, though small towns, including Las Barrancas and San Juanico – both with fewer than 1,000 residents, according to the latest census – lie in its path.
Polo, which has tracked off Mexico’s Pacific coast for several days, has brought heavy rain, destructive waves and strong winds, prompting evacuations, port closures and school cancellations.
Polo is expected to make a second landfall in southern Sonora, the NHC said.
&uuid=(email))