Hurricane Otis’s Category 5 Storm Slams Recent world climate News
Hurricane Otis slams ashore in Mexico Wednesday as a devastating Category 5 storm. In the Atlantic, Tammy is bound for Bermuda
US hurricane experts are tracking two different hurricanes, one churning in the Atlantic and the other a dangerous threat to land in the East Pacific. Hurricane Otis made landfall near Acapulco, Mexico, early Wednesday morning as a dan9kgerous Category 5 storm on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, with life-threatening and destructive flash flooding and mudslides.
All eyes on dangerous Hurricane Otis in the East Pacific
Hurricane Otis, located in the eastern Pacific, is drifting northward across southern Mexico. The tropical cyclone’s wind intensity increased from a 50-mph tropical storm at 4 p.m. CDT on Monday to a 165-mph Category 5 hurricane at 1:00 a.m. CDT on Wednesday.
The storm has rapidly strengthened, which occurs when winds increase by 35 mph or greater in 24 hours or less. In fact, the sustained winds in Hurricane Otis increased by 80 mph in 12 hours, the most rapid intensification on record for the East Pacific basin since at least 1966.
US Meteorologist Tuesday evening, “Otis will bring a wide variety of life-threatening impacts to parts of the Mexican coastline, including the major population center of Acapulco, home to almost one million people. A major hurricane has not made landfall in this area in modern times. Otis may result in catastrophic damage and will quickly become a humanitarian crisis in the wake of the storm, with many people needing medical care and supplies, food, shelter and safe drinking water.”
“Heavy rain, destructive winds and a life-threatening storm surge will accompany the storm as it moves inland,” Porter continued. “This will bring the risk of significant flooding and mudslides, catastrophic damage to structures, and widespread downed trees and power lines. Due to impacts from heavy rain, wind, and storm surge, Otis is a 5 on the US forecaster’s RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes in Mexico, a rare, highest-level designation on the exclusive US Meteorologist’s Scale for Hurricanes, showcasing the truly dire situation that can evolve in the area where Otis makes landfall.”
Rain and wind impacts will continue to spread inland in advance of the hurricane as it moves through southern Mexico. Rainfall amounts of 2-4 inches (50-100 mm) can occur over a widespread area directly along the coast with some places near Acapulco picking up between 8 and 12 inches (200 and 300 mm).
There is an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 17 inches (430 mm) for Otis in this area.
Just as with most tropical systems, as Otis continues to push ashore and encounters the mountainous terrain, the torrential rainfall will greatly raise the risk of life-threatening and damaging flash flooding and mudslides.
Tammy moving over the open Atlantic waters
Tammy is a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, spinning to the northeast of Puerto Rico. US meteorologists say it will continue to track to the north over the next few days as it moves away from the Caribbean.
Since developing on Wednesday, Oct. 18, Tammy has traveled over 1,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean, including a brush with the Leeward Islands
Recent Climate – Hurricane Otis’s Category 5 Storm, Hurricane Otis’s Category 5 Storm Slams Recent world climate News