Hurricane Rick moved slowly toward the west coast of Mexico on Sunday afternoon. At 2:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday the center of Hurricane Rick was located at latitude 16.4°N and longitude 101.7°W which put it about 85 miles (135 km) south of Zihuatenajo, Mexico. Rick was moving toward the north at 6 m.p.h. (10 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 85 m.p.h. (135 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 100 m.p.h. (160 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 980 mb.

A Hurricane Warning was in effect for the portion of the coast from Tecpan De Galeana to Punta San Telmo, Mexico. Tropical Storm Warnings were in effect for the portions of the coast from Punta San Telmo to Manzanillo and from Tecpan de Galeana to Acapulco, Mexico.

The intensity of Hurricane Rick was steady during the past few hours. The inner core of Rick’s circulation was not as well organized as it was on Saturday afternoon. There were breaks in the ring of thunderstorms surrounding the center of Hurricane Rick. Storms near the center of circulation continued to generate upper level divergence that pumped mass away from the hurricane. Bands of showers and thunderstorms revolved around the center of Rick. The circulation around Hurricane Rick was small. Winds to hurricane force extended out 15 miles (25 km) from the center of Rick. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 60 miles (95 km) from the center of circulation.

Hurricane Rick will move through an environment favorable for intensification during the next 12 hours. Rick will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 30˚C. It will move through a region where the upper level winds are weak and there will be little vertical wind shear. Hurricane Rick could intensify during the next 12 hours. However, the less organized core of Rick will limit intensification. An upper level trough near the west coast of the U.S. will produce strong southwesterly winds that will blow toward the top of Rick’s circulation on Monday. Those winds will cause vertical wind shear and the shear could cause Hurricane Rick to weaken as it nears the coast of Mexico.

Hurricane Rick will move around the western part of a high pressure system over Mexico during the next 24 hours. A large upper level trough near the west coast of the U.S. will cause the high pressure system to weaken. As the high pressure system weakens, the southern part of the upper level trough will steer Rick toward the north. On its anticipated track Hurricane Rick could make landfall on the west coast of Mexico on Sunday night. Hurricane Rick will bring strong winds and locally heavy rain to the portion of the coast near Zihuatanejo. Heavy rain could cause flash floods in parts of Guerrero and Michoacan on Sunday night and Monday.