Hurricane Willa, a Category 4 hurricane in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, gained rapid intensification and elevated briefly to the status of Category 5 today, but deescalated quickly back to Cat 4. It is expected that Hurricane Willa will make landfall Tuesday night north of Puerto Vallarta, bringing an abundance of rain, as well as damaging winds, and life threatening mudslides with dangerous storm surges. Residents are encouraged to move inland for their safety from the sustained winds of 160mph winds and assault of copious water levels.
Given the rapid intensification of the storm, the areas expected to be in the most threatened path of the storm were not given the necessary time for preparation and safety, much like Hurricane Michael experienced by the Florida Panhandle last week. With this in mind, officials are urging locals to put their personal safety first and seek higher ground if possible. The storm is anticipated to decline steadily until Wednesday afternoon when they expect it will be classified as a Tropical Depression once more.
Also in the Eastern Pacific is Tropical Storm Vicente, which is a small tropical cyclone, all things considered, but still poses a great threat of heavy rainfall to southern Mexico. Though it’s only just inside the qualifications of a tropical storm at 40mph (versus a Tropical Depression, where the cut off is 39mph), the forecast warns of heavy rainfall to Mexico. It is anticipated that the storm will devolve to a Tropical Depression by midnight tonight.