Hurricane Trudy approaches Mexico's western coast with flooding and landslide risk

Hurricane Trudy is moving toward Mexico's western coast, with forecasters warning of heavy rain, hurricane conditions and dangerous surf across parts of the Pacific shoreline. The storm was located about 305 km south-southeast of Manzanillo in Colima state early on Saturday, according to the National Hurricane Center. A hurricane warning was in effect from Manzanillo to Cabo Corrientes in Jalisco as the system tracked north-westward.

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The hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 150 km/h and was moving at about 13 km/h, with forecasters saying it could strengthen further before beginning to weaken on Sunday. Hurricane conditions were expected in the warning area on Saturday night, while tropical storm conditions were forecast to spread across the region during the day. Conditions under a hurricane watch could also deteriorate, the centre said, as the storm passed near the coast overnight into Sunday.

Rainfall totals of 10 to 20 cm were forecast across parts of Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco through the weekend, with isolated totals of up to 38 cm. Forecasters said that level of rain could trigger life-threatening flooding and landslides, especially in steep terrain. Outer rain bands could also bring 5 to 10 cm of rain, with isolated totals of about 15 cm, to Guerrero and Nayarit, where localised flash flooding was possible.

The storm also posed a coastal threat, with possible storm surge flooding in exposed areas and large, destructive waves. Swells generated by Trudy were already affecting parts of Mexico's southwestern coast and were expected to spread northward toward the west-central coast through the weekend. The National Hurricane Center warned that the surf and rip current conditions could become life-threatening.

The Mexican navy urged maritime interests and coastal residents to exercise extreme caution because of high waves, heavy rain and the risk of rising river levels. In Colima, officials said risks were currently low, but warned that significant rainfall could still cause damage because the ground was already saturated after successive storms on the Pacific coast this year. That makes the current system part of a broader pattern of repeated weather impacts along Mexico's Pacific shoreline.

What remains unclear is how much Trudy will strengthen or weaken as it nears land, and whether the heaviest rain will fall over the same areas already affected by earlier storms. The main developments to watch are the storm's exact track, the duration of hurricane-force conditions and whether flooding or landslides force local disruptions. Officials and forecasters are expected to continue updating warnings as the system moves closer to the coast.

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