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| Hurricane Patricia Strikes Mexico With 165 M.P.H. Winds | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| MEXICO CITY — The strongest hurricane to ever assault the Western Hemisphere slammed into Mexico’s southwest Pacific coast on Friday evening, transforming hotels with tourists into makeshift shelters, shuttering schools, closing airports and sending inhabitants racing to bus stations to flee inland. | |
| The hurricane, Patricia, was packing winds of about 165 miles per hour, having slowed considerably from earlier speeds of about 200 miles per hour as it moved closer to the coastline, which is dotted with a mixture of tiny fishing villages and five-star resorts in cities like Puerto Vallarta. | |
| As the outer wall of the hurricane swept over the coast at 6 pm, the authorities reported trees being knocked down and landslides taking place along the road between the state capital, Colima, and the port city of Manzanillo. | |
| The government of Mexico declared a state of emergency in dozens of municipalities in the states of Colima, Nayarit and Jalisco. Residents stacked sandbags in front of properties and rushed to grocery stores to stock up on supplies. | The government of Mexico declared a state of emergency in dozens of municipalities in the states of Colima, Nayarit and Jalisco. Residents stacked sandbags in front of properties and rushed to grocery stores to stock up on supplies. |
| “We are going to go through difficult moments in the face of a phenomenon that we have never seen before,” said President Enrique Peña Nieto in a radio interview. “Right now the most urgent important thing is that people are aware and look for a safe place.” | “We are going to go through difficult moments in the face of a phenomenon that we have never seen before,” said President Enrique Peña Nieto in a radio interview. “Right now the most urgent important thing is that people are aware and look for a safe place.” |
| Several officials spent the day taking to the airwaves to urge residents to leave the area or prepare for the hurricane, which transformed suddenly from a tropical storm on Thursday into a Category 5 storm — the fiercest. The speed of that transformation took meteorologists by surprise. | |
| “Wind speeds in a hurricane of this nature, what they do is toss up every loose object in their path,” said Roberto Ramírez de la Parra, the director of Mexico’s National Water Commission, which oversees the nation’s weather service. “The risk to people’s physical safety and to their lives is very high.” | “Wind speeds in a hurricane of this nature, what they do is toss up every loose object in their path,” said Roberto Ramírez de la Parra, the director of Mexico’s National Water Commission, which oversees the nation’s weather service. “The risk to people’s physical safety and to their lives is very high.” |
| Hurricane Patricia was so enormous that Scott Kelly, the American astronaut aboard the international space station, sent a Twitter photo of the storm from space with the warning: “It’s massive. Be careful!” | Hurricane Patricia was so enormous that Scott Kelly, the American astronaut aboard the international space station, sent a Twitter photo of the storm from space with the warning: “It’s massive. Be careful!” |
| The United States Embassy in Mexico City issued its own warning to American citizens in Mexico, urging those in threatened areas to “make preparations immediately to protect life and property.” | The United States Embassy in Mexico City issued its own warning to American citizens in Mexico, urging those in threatened areas to “make preparations immediately to protect life and property.” |
| Lorena Elizabeth Trujillo left her apartment building near the Puerto Vallarta port on Friday morning to get supplies and found the streets buzzing with civil protection officials, police officers and other authorities barking orders and offering safety recommendations. | Lorena Elizabeth Trujillo left her apartment building near the Puerto Vallarta port on Friday morning to get supplies and found the streets buzzing with civil protection officials, police officers and other authorities barking orders and offering safety recommendations. |
| “It seemed like the end of the world,” Ms. Trujillo, 27, said in a telephone interview. “I had never seen anything like that in my city. Everyone was running around with bags of food and water. And the traffic! There was so much traffic, I had never seen anything like it.” | “It seemed like the end of the world,” Ms. Trujillo, 27, said in a telephone interview. “I had never seen anything like that in my city. Everyone was running around with bags of food and water. And the traffic! There was so much traffic, I had never seen anything like it.” |
| But the lines that snaked around convenience stores on Friday morning were long gone, she said. By afternoon, she said, the authorities had cleared the streets and demanded that everyone either go home or to a shelter. | But the lines that snaked around convenience stores on Friday morning were long gone, she said. By afternoon, she said, the authorities had cleared the streets and demanded that everyone either go home or to a shelter. |
| The storm was expected to dump anywhere from six to 20 inches of rain in the affected states, and could result in flash floods and mudslides in mountainous areas. | The storm was expected to dump anywhere from six to 20 inches of rain in the affected states, and could result in flash floods and mudslides in mountainous areas. |
| The sudden strengthening of the storm also caught tourists off guard. Many scrambled to catch buses because airports in several towns were closed. Cecilia Rangel, a marketing consultant from Mexico City on vacation with four friends near Puerto Vallarta, had no such luck. | The sudden strengthening of the storm also caught tourists off guard. Many scrambled to catch buses because airports in several towns were closed. Cecilia Rangel, a marketing consultant from Mexico City on vacation with four friends near Puerto Vallarta, had no such luck. |
| As news of the approaching storm spread, she and her friends looked for a way to escape the city. But with the airport closed and buses filled, they braced to wait out the storm out at the Grand Mayan, a luxury hotel complex at the northern tip of Puerto Vallarta’s majestic bay. | As news of the approaching storm spread, she and her friends looked for a way to escape the city. But with the airport closed and buses filled, they braced to wait out the storm out at the Grand Mayan, a luxury hotel complex at the northern tip of Puerto Vallarta’s majestic bay. |
| “Everybody knows that there are hurricanes in October but you never think it’s going to hit you,” she said by phone. “The hotel told us to leave if we could, but if not ‘don’t worry.’” | “Everybody knows that there are hurricanes in October but you never think it’s going to hit you,” she said by phone. “The hotel told us to leave if we could, but if not ‘don’t worry.’” |
| The guests were told to report to the hotel’s windowless service building at 1 p.m., carrying only valuables. Throughout the morning, guests — many of them older Americans — filled the hotel’s tiny supermarket to stock up on supplies. Other hotels also reported staff and guests stocking up on water and other nonperishable goods. | The guests were told to report to the hotel’s windowless service building at 1 p.m., carrying only valuables. Throughout the morning, guests — many of them older Americans — filled the hotel’s tiny supermarket to stock up on supplies. Other hotels also reported staff and guests stocking up on water and other nonperishable goods. |
| “First there is the news, then you look for a way to get out, then there’s fear,” said Mrs. Rangel. “At the end you follow everything the hotel tells you.” | “First there is the news, then you look for a way to get out, then there’s fear,” said Mrs. Rangel. “At the end you follow everything the hotel tells you.” |
| Hurricane Patricia is the third serious storm to hit Mexico’s Pacific coast in recent years, but by all appearances seemed to be shaping up to be the worst. Although the government is well prepared to handle hurricanes, both Hurricane Ingrid, which cut off Acapulco for a week in 2013, and Hurricane Odile, which wreaked widespread damage on the coastal resort of Los Cabos, tested the government’s ability to repair infrastructure and restore basic services. | Hurricane Patricia is the third serious storm to hit Mexico’s Pacific coast in recent years, but by all appearances seemed to be shaping up to be the worst. Although the government is well prepared to handle hurricanes, both Hurricane Ingrid, which cut off Acapulco for a week in 2013, and Hurricane Odile, which wreaked widespread damage on the coastal resort of Los Cabos, tested the government’s ability to repair infrastructure and restore basic services. |
| Dennis Feltgen, a meteorologist and spokesman for the National Hurricane Center in the United States, said that as a Category 5 storm, Hurricane Patricia was likely to inflict catastrophic damage and leave stricken areas uninhabitable for weeks or months. | Dennis Feltgen, a meteorologist and spokesman for the National Hurricane Center in the United States, said that as a Category 5 storm, Hurricane Patricia was likely to inflict catastrophic damage and leave stricken areas uninhabitable for weeks or months. |
| The World Meteorological Organization warned that the hurricane’s strength was comparable to that of Typhoon Haiyan, which caused devastation in the Philippines in 2013. | The World Meteorological Organization warned that the hurricane’s strength was comparable to that of Typhoon Haiyan, which caused devastation in the Philippines in 2013. |
| As the storm approached, posts on Instagram showed people trying to leave Puerto Vallarta. One user posted a photograph of a message from a nearby resort that warned people to return home for their safety. | As the storm approached, posts on Instagram showed people trying to leave Puerto Vallarta. One user posted a photograph of a message from a nearby resort that warned people to return home for their safety. |
| “If this is not possible, please wait for further instructions for a possible evacuation,” the notice read. | “If this is not possible, please wait for further instructions for a possible evacuation,” the notice read. |
| Gabriela Ney, 32, a teacher in Puerto Vallarta, said in a telephone interview that she was holed up at home with her husband and 1-year-old child, in a two-story house about a mile from the sea. She said she did not live an evacuation zone so she decided to stay put. And leaving was almost impossible anyway, she said, because by noon there were no bus tickets left or gasoline to buy. | Gabriela Ney, 32, a teacher in Puerto Vallarta, said in a telephone interview that she was holed up at home with her husband and 1-year-old child, in a two-story house about a mile from the sea. She said she did not live an evacuation zone so she decided to stay put. And leaving was almost impossible anyway, she said, because by noon there were no bus tickets left or gasoline to buy. |
| “The plan is that if the water starts to rise, we’ll go up to the second floor. The water will have to rise a lot for us to flee,” she said. | “The plan is that if the water starts to rise, we’ll go up to the second floor. The water will have to rise a lot for us to flee,” she said. |
| She recalled unpleasant memories of Hurricane Paulina in 1997, a Category 3 storm that she said was followed by intense water shortages and respiratory illnesses. | She recalled unpleasant memories of Hurricane Paulina in 1997, a Category 3 storm that she said was followed by intense water shortages and respiratory illnesses. |
| “And that was a three!” she said. “That’s my only basis for comparison, so all I keep thinking is if that Category 3 was that bad, I don’t even want to think of a five. We are all very alarmed.” | “And that was a three!” she said. “That’s my only basis for comparison, so all I keep thinking is if that Category 3 was that bad, I don’t even want to think of a five. We are all very alarmed.” |
| In the United States, only three Category 5 storms that made landfall have been recorded, Mr. Feltgen said: a 1935 hurricane that killed more than 400 people; Hurricane Camille, which hit Mississippi and killed 244 people in 1969; and Hurricane Andrew, which hit Florida in 1992, killing at least 10 people there and three in the Bahamas. | In the United States, only three Category 5 storms that made landfall have been recorded, Mr. Feltgen said: a 1935 hurricane that killed more than 400 people; Hurricane Camille, which hit Mississippi and killed 244 people in 1969; and Hurricane Andrew, which hit Florida in 1992, killing at least 10 people there and three in the Bahamas. |
| But Hurricane Patricia is “uncharted territory,” Jim Cantore, a meteorologist with the Weather Channel, said on Twitter. | But Hurricane Patricia is “uncharted territory,” Jim Cantore, a meteorologist with the Weather Channel, said on Twitter. |
| “All the precautions to protect life and property should be completed now,” Mr. Feltgen said. “People need to be in a safe place and stay hunkered down until this storm is over.” | “All the precautions to protect life and property should be completed now,” Mr. Feltgen said. “People need to be in a safe place and stay hunkered down until this storm is over.” |
| At 4 pm, Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission cut off power from Puerto Vallarta to the city of Manzanillo. Enrique Ochoa, the utility’s director, said that the commission had 219 emergency power generators available in the area to provide electricity to clinics, hospitals and water purification plants. | |
| Mexico’s food distribution agency reported that it had 390 tons of food available to distribute in the area, enough to supply 150,000 rations a day from its 300 storage facilities in the area. |