PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico — Hurricane Simon pounded Mexico’s Pacific shoreline on Sunday as a Category 3 system, keeping its eye just offshore while blasting communities wedged between the ocean and the Sierra Madre with powerful wind and heavy rain.
The storm tracked parallel to the coast and closed in on the Puerto Vallarta region, where the most damaging conditions were expected around midnight and into Monday morning. The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said maximum sustained winds eased Sunday to 120 mph, but warned the system remained a dangerous hurricane.
Puerto Vallarta, a major destination in the state of Jalisco, was bracing not only in the resort zone but also in hillside neighborhoods inland where homes may be less able to withstand severe winds.
Hurricane Simon forecast and impacts
By Sunday afternoon, the eye was drifting northwest at about 5 mph, roughly 45 miles south of Cabo Corrientes, according to a senior hurricane specialist, Philippe Papin. Cabo Corrientes, the westernmost tip of mainland Mexico, sits at the southern end of Bahía de Banderas, the broad bay fronting Puerto Vallarta, and was most likely to face a direct hit.
Forecasters said hurricane-force winds extended up to 15 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds to 60 miles, putting much of the corridor between Mexico’s west coast and the Sierra Madre mountains at risk.
“We’re expecting catastrophic wind and life-threatening storm surge impacts along that west-central coast of Mexico where the hurricane warning is currently in effect,” Papin said. He added that very heavy rainfall could trigger life-threatening flooding and mudslides in higher terrain, along with significant swells.
The hurricane center projected an additional 2 to 4 inches of rain, with isolated totals up to 8 inches, across Colima, Jalisco, Nayarit and Sinaloa through early Thursday. It also warned that isolated maximum storm totals of 30 inches were possible in parts of Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco, heightening the risk of flooding and mudslides, especially on steep slopes.
Preparations along the coast
As Hurricane Simon neared Puerto Vallarta, National Guard vehicles patrolled while police used megaphones to clear joggers, dog walkers and cyclists from the waterfront and urged everyone to seek shelter. Some people ignored the warnings.
Jalisco officials suspended classes Friday and Monday in 22 coastal municipalities, began evacuations from high-risk areas and asked the tourism sector to ensure both workers and visitors could access shelters or designated safe zones.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum urged residents of Jalisco, Colima, Nayarit and Michoacán to remain sheltered until authorities declare the danger has passed, to follow civil protection guidance and to avoid travel on public roads. “Precautionary evacuation efforts to safe zones are ongoing; the priority is our safety,” she wrote on X.
Local reactions as the storm closes in
Hotel worker Víctor Martínez stocked up on nonperishable food, saying he could not report to work because public transportation was suspended and most of the hotel had been evacuated. He recalled a devastating hurricane in 2002 and said the community is taking more precautions now.
Despite the threat from Hurricane Simon, tourists continued to arrive. Visitors Ricardo Ramírez and Brenda Villarreal, who said they had never experienced a hurricane, searched for food near the boardwalk but encountered police urging people to take cover. The couple had planned a four-day trip from Guadalajara and were still trying to understand the scope of the danger.
Editors’ note: This report reflects a correction to the spelling of Philippe Papin’s name.
