Hurricane Polo approaches Mexico, threatens 'severe' damage

Strong winds battered Mexico's Baja California peninsula on Monday ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Polo, a major El Nino-charged storm that is expected to cause severe damage on the Pacific coast.Hurricane Polo approaches Mexico, threatens 'severe' damagePolo is forecast to make landfall on the south of Baja California as a Category 3 hurricane at around 4:00 pm local time , according to the US National Hurricane Center .Early on Monday strong winds were already churning the sea off Puerto San Carlos, a small fishing port of nearly 6,000 people in Baja California Sur state that lies in Polo's path.Juan Manuel Sarabia had boarded up the facade of his home and reinforced it with wooden beams."It's coming with full force," the 53-year-old whale-watching and fishing guide told AFP."We have to protect ourselves for our families and our property."This year's Pacific hurricane season is shaping up as more severe than usual, with a Super El Nino an extreme version of a recurring weather pattern causing historic warming across the equatorial Pacific.The hurricane had initially been forecast not to make landfall but changed course late last week and is expected to hammer the peninsula and also lash mainland Mexico as a hurricane early Tuesday before weakening, according to the NHC.Polo was packing sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour , the NHC said, warning of "life-threatening winds and flash floods" across Baja California Sur and Sonora states.Sarabia breathed a sigh of relief when he opened a weather app on his phone and saw that Puerto San Carlos was no longer in the projected eye of the hurricane, which will make landfall further north.The head of Mexico's meteorological service, Fabian Vazquez, said storm surges and heavy rains could cause "very severe" damage.Some 169 shelters have been opened across Baja California Sur.In Puerto San Carlos, only a handful of homes and businesses were boarded up or sandbagged against flooding.The authorities did not issue a mandatory evacuation order but some residents have decided to ride out the storm in the nearest city, located about half an hour away.- 'It will be tough' -Margarita Diaz and her family ultimately opted to hunker down at home in Puerto San Carlos, behind windows sealed only with blue masking tape."It will be tough, but I have faith in God," Diaz said.The military have deployed nearly 7,000 troops in the state, where classes were suspended and public servants have been ordered to work from home, where possible.Laura Velazquez, National Coordinator of Civil Protection, said all maritime activities were suspended in the area, as well as access to beaches.El Nino raises surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean and causes global changes in winds and rainfall.In addition to Polo, meteorologists are monitoring Rachel, a tropical storm also brewing in the Pacific off Mexico that has the potential to strengthen."It will move parallel to the coast of Mexico all week, but right towards the weekend it could also start moving towards Baja California Sur," Vazquez said.jt/acc/cb/mlmThis article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.