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Hurricane John Now a Category 4 Storm

Posted on: Wednesday, 30 August 2006, 09:00 CDT

By Associated Press Writer

ACAPULCO, Mexico - Hurricane John became a dangerous, Category 4 storm Wednesday, with forecasters predicting its center would approach land and then march parallel to the Mexican coast.

Meteorologist Mark McInerney told The Associated Press that the storm had strengthened to a Category 4 storm. While its eye was not projected to hit land, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said hurricane-force winds were likely to begin lashing beaches up the coast from Acapulco and Ixtapa late Wednesday.

Rains were already soaking some deserted beaches in these resorts, but there were no signs that residents and tourists were preparing for the storm.

Before it was upgraded from a Category 3 hurricane, John had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph early Wednesday, with stronger gusts. A Category 4 storm has winds of more than 130 mph.

John was running parallel to the coast and was not expected to affect the United States. The forecast path would carry the storm out to sea below Los Cabos at the tip of the Baja California peninsula, but forecasters warned that track could vary.

Early Wednesday, the hurricane was centered about 135 miles west-southwest of Acapulco and was moving to the west-northwest at 12 mph.

The hurricane center said hurricane force winds extended outward as far as 45 miles, with tropical storm-force winds reaching out 125 miles.

Hurricane watches and warnings covered more than 400 miles of coast from Tecpan de Galeana - up the coast from Acapulco - to Cabo Corrientes, the southwestern tip on the bay that holds Puerto Vallarta. The resort of Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo was in the watch area.

A hurricane warning was called for the center of that area, from the industrial center of Lazaro Cardenas toward the port of Manzanillo.

"While the center of John is forecast to remain just offshore any deviation to the right of track will bring hurricane force winds to the coast in the warning area," the center said.

Saul Martinez, night manager at Acapulco's Los Flamingos Hotel, said there weren't many guests around because it was the low season, but that the storm wasn't scaring away those who had come to the beach.

"The people are going out, like any other day," he said.

Skies over the resort were cloudy, but it had yet to begin raining late Tuesday night.

Authorities warned residents of low-lying areas to be on alert and urged deep-sea fishing expeditions to return to port in Acapulco. But the airport was still open, and there were few signs of preparation for the hurricane.

Forecasters warned the hurricane could dump up to 12 inches of rain along some of Mexico's southern coast.

The storm had already brought winds and rain to a swath of coastline from Puerto Escondido, a beach community popular with surfers in the southern state of Oaxaca, to Acapulco.

Source: Associated Press/AP Online

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