At Least 5 Dead as Hurricane Simon and Tropical Storm Rachel Batter Mexico’s Pacific Coast
MEXICO CITY, Oct. 13 — At least five people have died and several remain missing after Hurricane Simon and Tropical Storm Rachel struck Mexico’s Pacific coast, triggering flash flooding, landslides and widespread infrastructure damage, authorities said.
Four of the deaths occurred in Baja California, where post-tropical cyclone Rachel unleashed torrential rain that swept away vehicles and inundated homes in the coastal city of Ensenada. A 13-year-old girl was found dead on Sunday, followed by the discovery of two women aged between 30 and 35 and a 4-year-old boy on Monday at the Rancho Richi site in the Oaxaca ejido, according to Alejandro Monreal, Ensenada’s municipal public security director. At least six people remain missing — four in Ensenada and two from the town of San Felipe, a father and son who went fishing on Saturday and did not return.
In Guerrero state, a 71-year-old man died after a wall collapsed in Chilpancingo, the state capital, Governor Evelyn Salgado said at a news conference.
Rescue Operations and Displacement
The Mexican military deployed helicopters to rescue 32 people — 22 of them foreign nationals, including Germans and Americans — from a ranch in Ensenada that had been cut off by flooding and landslides. Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar Ávila said 13 of those rescued were youths, and some were missionaries who had been meeting at the ranch. Officials were also assisting more than 50 people in temporary shelters.
Approximately 14,000 federal and state personnel have been deployed across Baja California to assist affected residents and respond to the emergency.
Storm Status and Forecast
Hurricane Simon, which peaked as a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph (250 kph) — just below the threshold for Category 5 — had weakened to a Category 2 by Monday evening. Its eye remained offshore as its outer bands of wind and rain slammed communities between the Sierra Madre and the Pacific Ocean near Puerto Vallarta.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Simon was expected to remain a hurricane through midweek and could intensify again on Tuesday and Wednesday. It is forecast to turn northeast and make landfall sometime Friday near Sinaloa, after which it will weaken rapidly inland. Simon could produce 10 to 20 inches (25–50 cm) of rain over parts of southwestern Mexico, with some areas in Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco receiving up to 30 inches (76 cm). “This rainfall will produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain,” the center warned.
In Guerrero, Simon downed trees and electricity poles, blocked roads and flooded homes in coastal towns including the major seaport of Acapulco, Salgado said.
Rachel’s Impact Beyond Mexico
Tropical Storm Rachel, which weakened after passing Baja California, sent remnants across the southwestern United States, causing severe weekend flooding in Las Vegas and prompting flood watches across the region. The storm also pushed unusually large waves onto Southern California beaches, where abnormally warm ocean water — about 7 to 8 degrees above normal due to El Niño — contributed to destructive high tides that damaged beachfront homes.
Forecasters attributed the above-average Pacific hurricane activity this season to a strong El Niño pattern, which typically suppresses storm formation in the Atlantic while fueling stronger systems in the Pacific.
Puerto Vallarta’s international airport suspended operations until Tuesday morning, and Jalisco state had suspended classes in 22 coastal municipalities as a precaution. As rains eased Monday, workers removed wooden panels from boarded-up storefronts and some businesses reopened, though officials urged residents to remain on alert.
“Personally, I think we should remain on alert because we don’t really know whether it will arrive, move elsewhere or dissipate,” said Noelia Carrillo, a tourism agency worker in Puerto Vallarta.