Hurricane Nolo still threatens Hawaii as Mexico’s Baja braces for major Hurricane Polo

Floods and mudslides still a risk

Forecasters said Nolo’s outer bands could cause life-threatening flooding and mudslides, with parts of the Big Island possibly getting up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain. Heavy rain also was expected on the other islands.

“Don’t venture out if you don’t have to into the dangerous flooding environment, but also high winds. We can have trees and power lines down,” said Michael Brennan, director of the hurricane center.

More than 120 National Guard members were activated on the island, part of roughly 400 statewide after the governor issued an emergency proclamation. President Donald Trump recently approved an emergency declaration, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate assistance and provide funding support.

Residents are still recovering from Hurricane Lala, which produced heavy rain and winds strong enough to sweep about 100 homes off their foundations on the Big Island.

In Naalehu, at the island’s southern point, Peggy McKibbin surveyed silt-covered roads from her four-wheeler Sunday and pointed out the lingering damage from Lala — a local bakery, fire station and hardware store wiped out.

“Everyone has been very much affected by this,” McKibbin said.

The latest storms in a busy season

The Pacific has been unusually active this season, according to National Weather Service lead forecaster Bob Oravec, with storm activity running above average during what is already the peak of hurricane season. He said that pattern is consistent with El Niño years, when the Pacific often sees more tropical storms and hurricanes.

Polo was moving to the north-northwest at 12 mph (19 kph) about 285 miles (460 kilometers) west-southwest of Cabo San Lucas at the peninsula’s southern tip, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Sunday afternoon.

Mexico’s National Meteorological Service, or SMN, said in a social media post that Polo was expected to make a Baja landfall on Monday.

The Mexican navy said in a statement that it had gathered personnel and humanitarian aid in the ports of Guaymas and Mazatlan, on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, and has deployed three vessels that could ship aid to coastal communities isolated by the hurricane.

One of the towns in the hurricane’s projected path is San Juanico, a small fishing community on Baja’s Pacific coast. The town has only had full-time electricity for a few years, and still experiences frequent outages. There is concern that washed-out roads could block access to the closest medical facility, about 80 minutes away in Ciudad Constitucion.

“Our people are concerned about this event,” said Gloriely Robles Meza, a manager at a small hotel. “We haven’t faced such a worrying situation in many years.”

Robles Meza said Sunday that the Mexican Army arrived in San Juanico to prepare a shelter and to provide support for possible emergencies. An electrical crew was also there to prepare for Polo’s arrival.

Also Sunday, Tropical Storm Rachel formed well off Mexico’s southwest coast, the Miami-based U.S. hurricane center said. It added that Rachel had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and was located about 300 miles (485 kilometers) south of Acapulco, Mexico. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect.

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Associated Press writers Christopher Weber in Los Angeles, Gabriela Aoun Angueira in San Diego, California, and Hannah Schoenbaum in Midway, Utah, contributed.

Eugene Garcia And Gregory Bull, The Associated Press

by The Canadian Press

Hurricane Nolo still threatens Hawaii as Mexico’s Baja braces for major Hurricane Polo

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