Climate & Environment
Hurricane Simon weakens offshore as flooding hits Mexico’s Pacific coast
The National Hurricane Center said Simon remained a powerful Category 3 storm just offshore Sunday night. Homes flooded near Manzanillo, and Mexico’s electricity agency reported 99.78% service restoration in four named municipalities.
Executive summary
- Storm stays offshore: In its 8 p.m. Sunday advisory, the National Hurricane Center said Simon was moving slowly just offshore of west-central Mexico with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph, a Category 3 hurricane. The center warned that destructive winds and flooding rain still threatened the coast; it did not report a landfall.[1][2]
- Flooding reported in Manzanillo: Reuters reported that heavy rain flooded homes in Manzanillo, where residents waded through streets and soldiers helped families remove water. The report described conditions on Sunday and did not provide a consolidated casualty or damage total.[2]
- Electricity mostly restored in four municipalities: Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission said service had been restored to 99.78% of affected users in Aquila and Lázaro Cárdenas in Michoacán, Manzanillo in Colima, and Cihuatlán in Jalisco. That figure covers users in the named municipalities, not all areas exposed to the storm.[3]
At 8 p.m. Sunday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center placed Simon about 125 miles west-northwest of Manzanillo and 45 miles south-southwest of Cabo Corrientes, moving northwest at 5 mph. Maximum sustained winds were 120 mph, down from Category 4 strength earlier in the day. The advisory said Simon was moving slowly just offshore; it did not report that the center had made landfall.[1][2]
The NHC said the threat of destructive winds and flooding rain continued along the coast. It forecast additional rainfall through early Thursday in parts of Colima, Jalisco, Nayarit and Sinaloa and warned that storm totals could reach 30 inches in parts of Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco, raising the risk of life-threatening flooding and mudslides in steep terrain.[1][2]
Reuters reported that heavy rain flooded homes in Manzanillo on Sunday. Residents waded through flooded streets while soldiers helped families remove water. The report included a resident’s account of a flooded home, but it did not establish a municipality-wide damage estimate or a verified death toll.[2]
The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) said on Sunday that service had been restored to 99.78% of affected users in the municipalities of Aquila and Lázaro Cárdenas in Michoacán, Manzanillo in Colima, and Cihuatlán in Jalisco. The percentage was limited to users in those named areas; it was not a region-wide restoration figure for every community exposed to Simon.[3]
The CFE said it had deployed more than 3,100 electricity workers and repair equipment across six Pacific states. A separate government-hosted statement said crews had completed restoration in 13 Guerrero municipalities affected earlier in the week. These figures describe the agency’s response and do not indicate that flooding or other storm hazards had ended in the west-central coastal zone.[4]
Before Sunday’s approach, Mexico’s president urged residents in coastal areas to remain sheltered and follow civil-protection instructions. The Associated Press reported that Jalisco had suspended classes in coastal municipalities and authorities were moving people from exposed areas. Those earlier precautions did not resolve the risk from continuing rain, wind and surf.[5][6][1]