Hurricane Polo Soaks Mexico's Pacific Coast as Tropical Storm Nolo Bears Down on Hawaii

Powerful Hurricane Polo swept bands of heavy rain across Mexico's Pacific coastline early Thursday, while Tropical Storm Nolo gathered strength far to the west and bore down on Hawaii with the potential for catastrophic flooding.

Polo was expected to hold Category 5 intensity as it tracked along Mexico's coast over the coming days. Rain and strong winds had already begun lashing the shoreline, with waves breaking on beaches that are normally calm. Although the eye and the fiercest winds were forecast to stay offshore, forecasters warned the downpours could trigger life-threatening flooding and mudslides. Guerrero state was singled out as especially vulnerable to those hazards.

Early Thursday, Polo's center was about 130 miles (209 kilometers) south-southwest of Zihuatanejo, drifting northwest at 7 mph (11 kph). A turn toward the west-northwest later in the day was expected to carry it farther out to sea before it swung back northwest on Saturday. Maximum sustained winds reached 160 mph (257 kph), with hurricane-force winds extending up to 40 miles (65 km) from the eye and tropical-storm-force winds reaching as far as 115 miles (185 km). The storm was forecast to remain a major hurricane for several more days.

The area most at risk from Polo is rural and mountainous, dotted with a handful of small tourist towns and ports. Much of it is marked by poverty, and residents often say authorities leave them to cope on their own when natural disasters strike. Mexico's government has called for evacuations in some areas and opened shelters, deploying thousands of military and Red Cross personnel as a precaution.

In Lázaro Cárdenas, in Michoacán state, Concepción López Villegas worked to shore up her seaside restaurant against the coming rain. Strong waves were already hitting some beaches, and she said she feared the storm could destroy the small business she spent decades building.

"We're worried and trying to protect our businesses," López Villegas said. "And of course, we're sad because it's our heritage, our legacy that from one moment to another could be destroyed."

Farther west, Tropical Storm Nolo churned about 295 miles (475 kilometers) south of South Point, Hawaii. It was forecast to become a hurricane by Thursday night and to near the Big Island as early as Friday, prompting a hurricane watch for Hawaii County.

Governor Josh Green's office said public schools and state and county offices on the Big Island would close Thursday and Friday, while Maui County would shut them on Friday ahead of heavy rain, winds and flooding. Forecasters said the storm could drop up to 20 inches (51 centimeters) of rain.

The National Weather Service said Nolo would likely strengthen before closing in on the Big Island on Friday or Saturday. Warning coordination meteorologist John Bravender said the storm could become a major hurricane, and that while high winds were expected, the chief concern was flash flooding. He said 20 to 30 inches (50 to 76 centimeters) of rain could fall through Saturday on southeastern parts of the Big Island — the same region hit hard in August by Hurricane Lala.

"That by itself could cause catastrophic flooding, but when you put that on top of grounds that we've been raining off and on for the last couple of months … that rain could cause even more damage," Bravender said.

He urged residents across all the islands to prepare in case the storm's path shifts. "You need to take action now," he said. "Today is really the last dry day you have to get ready."

Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda told residents in a social media video that they should start preparing immediately, urging them to assemble an emergency kit with food, water and medications, trim vegetation and clear drains. "This is a very serious situation," he said. "We do believe that the rain is going to come. It's coming already."

The governor issued an emergency proclamation Tuesday, and more than 230 Hawaii National Guard members have been activated, according to Maj. Gen. Stephen Logan, adjutant general of the state's Department of Defense. Kauai's electric cooperative urged residents to prepare for "the possibility of prolonged power outages" and to store nonperishable food and potable water. More than 100 Kauai households remain without power from Hurricane Lowell, which passed west of the island on Sept. 7. Hawaiian Electric, the state's main utility, said crews would return to at-risk areas ahead of the storm.

Elsewhere, Tropical Storm Fay re-formed early Thursday in the northern Atlantic with maximum sustained winds near 40 mph (65 km/h), positioned 935 miles (1,505 kilometers) west-southwest of the Azores and moving west-southwest at 9 mph (15 kph). In the Pacific, Hurricane Odalys carried winds of 85 mph (137 kph) and was centered about 1,200 miles (1,940 kilometers) west-southwest of the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California peninsula.