Hurricane Simon strengthens to category 4, slams Mexico’s Pacific coast

Hurricane Simon struck Mexico’s Pacific coast on Sunday as a category 4 storm, prompting warnings about its continued strength and the threat it poses to coastal areas.

Authorities said the eye of the hurricane remained just offshore, while powerful winds and heavy rain battered residents living between the Sierra Madre mountains and the ocean.

The US National Hurricane Center reported that the hurricane’s center was tracking along the coast near Puerto Vallarta, where the region is expected to experience its most destructive winds and rainfall around midnight, with the effects likely to persist into Monday morning.

Forecasts and warnings

The center added that it remains unclear whether the hurricane will make landfall, which could allow it to maintain its dangerous intensity, as its winds are still reaching 140 miles per hour (220 kilometers per hour).

Reports also indicated that by midday, Simon’s eye was moving at about 7 miles (11 kilometers) per hour and was located roughly 65 miles (100 kilometers) from Cabo Corrientes.