People on Mexico's northern Pacific coast are bracing for Hurricane Polo, which is forecast to make landfall on Monday night or early Tuesday. The storm, now a category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 115 mph (185 km/h), is expected to move over Baja California Sur, a region popular with tourists and home to the resort destination of Los Cabos.
The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned of heavy rainfall that could lead to life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain. It also warned that Polo could unleash a storm surge accompanied by large and destructive waves.
Residents stocked up on essentials such as drinking water and food on Sunday as the storm approached. In Cabo San Lucas, famous for its natural rock arch, authorities restricted access to the beaches, and some restaurants closed in the town, which acts as a base for sport fishers and whale watchers.
The storm's arrival follows a period of rapid intensification and later weakening. Earlier this week, Polo was a category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 165 mph (266 km/h), churning about 215 miles (346 km) south of the coastal city of Zihuatanejo in Guerrero state, according to the Guardian. At that point it was considered unlikely to directly hit Mexico, having been fueled by stronger than usual El Niño patterns in the Pacific Ocean. The storm has since weakened and shifted its track toward Baja California Sur.