Hurricane Lidia Hits Mexico Near Puerto Vallarta

Powerful Hurricane Lidia hit the coast of Mexico near Puerto Vallarta on Tuesday evening. At 8:00 p.m. EDT on Tuesday the center of Hurricane Lidia was located at latitude 20.1°N and longitude 105.5°W which put it about 35 miles (55 km) south-southwest of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Lidia was moving toward the east-northeast at 16 m.p.h. (26 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 140 m.p.h. (220 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 165 m.p.h. (265 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 942 mb.

A Hurricane Warning was in effect for the portion of the coast from Manzanillo to El Roblito, Mexico. A Hurricane Warning was in effect for Las Islas Marias. A Tropical Storm Warning was in effect for the portion of the coast from El Roblito to Mazatlan, Mexico. A Tropical Storm Warning was also in effect for the portion of the coast from Manzanillo to Punta San Telmo, Mexico.

Hurricane Lidia rapidly intensified to Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Scale prior to making landfall on the west coast of Mexico. Winds to hurricane force extended out 30 miles (50 km) from the center of Lidia. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 140 miles (220 km) from the center of circulation. The Hurricane Intensity Index (HII) was 28.3. The Hurricane Size Index (HSI) was 9.8 and the Hurricane Wind Intensity Size Index (HWISI) was 38.1. Hurricane Lidia was similar in size and intensity to Hurricane Charley when Charley hit Southwest Florida in 2004.

An upper level trough west of Baja California will steer Hurricane Lidia toward the northeast during the next 24 hours. On its anticipated track, Hurricane Lidia will move quickly inland over Jalisco. Lidia will weaken steadily as it moves farther inland. Even though it will weaken, Hurricane Lidia be capable of causing severe damage. Lidia will bring strong, gusty winds and locally heavy rain. Regional outages of electricity are likely. Heavy rain will fall in Jalisco and Nayarit. The heavy rain is likely to cause flash floods in some locations. Hurricane Lidia could cause a storm surge of up to 13 feet (4 meters) along the coast of Jalisco.