10/23/2015

Cat 5 Patricia Now Largest Hurricane on Record in East Pacific

by Monica Cryan

10-23-2015

Update:

Patricia is now the strongest Eastern Pacific hurricane on record and expected to make landfall in southwestern Mexico later today.

Patricia was named a hurricane early Thursday morning and quickly spiraled into an extremely dangerous, Category five storm. It is expected to move quickly and make landfall near Colima, Mexico Friday afternoon/evening. The National Hurricane Center is urging everyone to rush to finish their preparations.


Data gathered from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicates that maximum sustained winds are near 200 mph with higher gusts. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 30 miles from the center and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 175 miles.


NASA’s Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite saw that the storm was lopsided and most of the storm’s moderate to heavy rainfall was on the western side. Rain was measured at a rate of more than 2.16 inches per hour west of Patricia’s center.

Concerns

The forecast for Patricia is to slam parts of the western coastline with 6-12 inches of rain accumulation. This could produce flash floods and mudslides. The combination of high rainfall rate and strong winds is also a concern for emergency officials in Mexico.

Watches and Warnings
A Hurricane Warning is in effect for:
● San Blas to Punta San Telmo

A Hurricane Watch is in effect for:
● East of Punta San Telmo to Lazaro Cardenas

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for:
● East of Punta San Telmo to Lazaro Cardenas


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