Hurricane John makes landfall in Mexico’s Baja California by Laura Gilchrist
Hurricane John made landfall over Cabo del Este, in southern Baja California, around 3 am UK time on Saturday. The storm is expected to continue producing steady winds of at least 85 mph (135 km/h) for much of Saturday, but with a forecasted track over land John is already on a weakening trend.
A total of around 15,000 people were reported to have sought safety away from the affected part of the Baja peninsula, with others heading for local storm shelters.
John is still forecast to cause coastal flooding, particularly on the windward eastern side of the Baja peninsula. Rainfall totals of 15-30 centimetres (6-12 inches) are expected through the southern and central parts of the state, with isolated places seeing up to 45 cm (18 in).
It is too early to know whether John will continue on its current path and reach the southwestern United States as a tropical cyclone, but even if it does not, rainfall from the remnants is still likely.
Meanwhile, scientists in the Colorado State University’s hurricane research team revised their 2006 Atlantic hurricane season forecast on Friday, for the second time in a month. Their original forecast, issued at the beginning of the hurricane season in June, called for 17 named storms to form during 2006. After admitting that the original forecast was too high and that “it stunk”, an up-to-date forecast was issued less than a month ago. The latest revision, issued on 1st September, predicts that there will be a total of 13 named storms, including a below-average total of five hurricanes.
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