Hurricane Norma strengthens on a path toward Los Cabos in Mexico
Mexico City, The Gulf Observer: Hurricane Norma strengthened to a major storm Thursday as it spun off Mexico’s Pacific coast on a path expected to bring it near Los Cabos at the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that Norma had 130 mph (215 kph) maximum sustained winds and was located about 405 miles (650 kilometers) south-southeast of Cabo San Lucas. The Category 4 storm was moving north at 7 mph (11 kph), The Associated Press (AP) reported.
A hurricane watch was in effect for the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula, but even a minor deviation from the forecast track would take Norma toward the mainland of Mexico’s western Pacific coast.
Norma was expected to begin weakening Friday and into the weekend as it neared land. It remained unclear if it would make landfall at Los Cabos, made up of the twin resorts of San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, or veer off beforehand and hit Mexico’s Sinaloa state to the east.
