Hurricane Otis struck the Pacific coast of Mexico five miles south of Acapulco on Oct. 25 at 1:25 a.m. CT as a Category 5 storm. It is the strongest storm in history to hit the Eastern Pacific Coast. Because of the strength of Otis, information about the extent of the damage, especially in and around Acapulco, is only trickling out two days later, due to lack of access and communication outages.
On Tuesday, Oct. 24, Otis underwent one of the fastest and strongest rapid intensification cycles ever witnessed, transforming from a tropical storm to a Category 4 storm in under 12 hours. Otis’ strength increased from 70 mph to 160 mph and grew to 165 mph before landfall. Rapid intensification is defined as an increase of 35 mph in a 24-hour period.
Well-known meteorologist Jim Cantore said, “In my 37 plus years I have never seen something like that occur with a tropical system. When I left on assignment Monday I knew it could impact Mexico, but to blow up like that!! Never saw it coming.”
In addition to recreational tourists, Acapulco – the tourism center of Guerrero state – was also hosting an international mining industry convention when Otis made landfall. Dozens of hotels were damaged.
By Wednesday morning (Oct. 25), Otis had dropped to a Category 1 hurricane, and by the afternoon had dissipated. While a fast-moving system, Otis still caused extensive damage to the tourism industry and locals alike, including waist-high flooding and landslides as it moved into the mountains.
(Damage in Acapulco, Mexico after Hurricane Otis, Oct. 25, 2023. Credit: Jonatan Mendoza via X)
The National Hurricane Center said the rapid intensification cycle was a “nightmare scenario” and that this kind of explosive intensification has only been exceeded once, by Hurricane Patricia in 2015. Otis marked the first time a hurricane close to this level of intensity hit Mexico. Hurricane experts blame warm ocean temperatures due to climate change for the strength of Otis.
According to the National Weather Service, “The eastern Pacific hurricane region covers the eastern North Pacific Ocean east of 140˚W north of the equator.”
The region’s hurricane season officially runs from May 15th through November 30th, but hurricane-related disasters can occur during any season. As our climate changes and disasters occur more frequently throughout the year, disaster seasons are becoming obsolete and the need for year-round preparedness is increasing.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) 2023 Eastern Pacific
Hurricane Season Outlook was released on May 25, 2023, and indicated an above-normal season was most likely (55%). NOAA’s 2023 Outlook predicted 14-20 named storms, 7-11 hurricanes and 4-8 major hurricanes. Hurricanes rated Category 3 and higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale are known as major hurricanes. The 1991-2020 averages are 15 named storms, eight hurricanes and four major hurricanes.
As Kelsey Ellis and Nicholas Grondin said in their article on the 2023 hurricane
forecasts, “While the Atlantic gets the most attention, largely because it gets more damage with more people and property in the way, the Pacific tends to get more storms, especially during El Niño years.”
Through Sept. 19, 2023, the eastern Pacific region saw 11 named storms.
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