Sandra: Record late hurricane prompts tropical storm warning
theweathernetwork.com
Friday, November 27, 2015, 10:15 AM - Hurricane Sandra continues to lose strength as it approaches Mexico's Pacific coast, becoming a Category 2 storm on Friday.
Still, this late season hurricane has prompted tropical storm warnings.
"The Government of Mexico has issued a Tropical Storm Warning for the coast of mainland Mexico from Altata to San Blas and for Las Islas Marias," said the National Hurricane Center in a statement Friday morning.
According to the NHC, Sandra could produce up to 80 mm of rain over the southern portions of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur.
Locally heavier amounts up to 250 mm are possible across the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Nayarit, northwest Jalisco, western Durango and southern Chihuahua.
"This rainfall may produce life threatening flash flood and mudslides," the NHC warns.
Parts of the U.S. southern plains could also see some moisture from Sandra over the next few days.
On Thursday, Sandra became the latest Category 4 hurricane on record in both the Atlantic and eastern Pacific basins.
"In other words, Sandra is the strongest hurricane so late in the season," says weather.com.
Hurricanes tend to favour warmer waters and minimal wind shear, which is why (as anticipated) 2015 saw such a high activity rate and record-breaking typhoons in the Pacific.
In 2011, Hurricane Kenneth became the strongest hurricane to form so late in the season, though it remained offshore along the coast of Guatemala.
MUST SEE: Get ready for The Weather Network's Winter Forecast
