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Hurricane Polo Reaches 180 mph Off Mexico’s Pacific Coast

Courtroom-sketch editorial illustration based on a NOAA September 20 satellite image of Tropical Storm Odalys at left and developing Polo near Mexico at right; it does not depict Polo's September 22 peak winds, rendered in warm ochre and slate-blue pastel strokes.

Reports from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft prompted the National Hurricane Center to raise Hurricane Polo's estimated sustained winds to 180 mph (285 km/h) on September 22. The Category 5 storm was nearly stationary off southwestern Mexico, and forecasters expected it to move generally west-northwest while remaining offshore over the next two days. A tropical storm warning was in effect from Tecpan de Galeana to Punta San Telmo, where tropical storm conditions were expected by early Wednesday. The center forecast 3 to 6 inches of rain, with isolated totals of 8 inches, along coastal Guerrero and Michoacán through Thursday, warning of potentially dangerous flooding and mudslides.

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