Polo strengthens, poised to hit Mexico and soak Southwest US

Polo strengthens, poised to hit Mexico and soak Southwest US The Associated Press September 25, 2026 - 5:27 pm Mexico is not the threat posed by Hurricane Polo as it moves toward the Baja California peninsula after delivering stormy conditions to the southwestern coast. The National Hurricane Center reported that Polo intensified overnight into Friday, lashing parts of Mexico’s Pacific Coast. No significant damage or flooding was reported along the shore during that period. By midday Friday, attention shifted to the peninsula, where the storm was forecast to curve back and make landfall between Monday and Tuesday. Local officials prepared shelters, and the Mexican government announced on Friday that ports in the region would be closed as dark clouds gathered overhead. The latest estimate placed sustained winds at 180 mph. Residents filled sandbags to protect beachfront businesses and evacuated homes in certain coastal areas on Thursday. Mexican authorities opened shelters, cleared people from beaches, and deployed 15,000 information unit along the coast. Schools were closed. In the port city of Lázaro Cárdenas in Michoacán, seawater surged through homes, leaving wooden planks and furniture scattered in the streets. Residents and officials cleared debris and shoveled thick mud that covered much of the town. Alicia Contreras said the walls and foundation of her building had been severely damaged by 15‑foot waves. As officers and family members helped sort through the wreckage, Contreras worried about how she would recover economically. “This is immense due to the fact that we person nary different root of income. Now we’re conscionable surviving,” Contreras said. Some moisture associated with Polo is expected to be pushed into parts of the southwestern United States by Monday, possibly producing scattered flash flooding in the Four Corners region, especially sections of Arizona and New Mexico. Biologists on Friday relocated eggs from 2 olive ridley oversea turtle nests on Southern California beaches to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach out of concern over high tides and hazardous surf as officials monitor Polo.