Hurricane John nears Mexico

ACAPULCO, Mexico – Hurricane John’s outer bands lashed western Mexico Tuesday night as the powerful Category 3 storm threatened to flood coastal areas and ruin vacations at some Pacific resorts.

John became the sixth Pacific hurricane of the season earlier in the day and quickly grew in strength with maximum sustained winds reaching 115 mph. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said it would likely grow even stronger.

However, it was not expected to make a direct hit on land or affect the United States. Long-term predictions had it moving to the northwest, parallel to the coastline, with its outer winds lashing the resorts of Acapulco, Ixtapa, Puerto Vallarta and Los Cabos. John could cause landslides and flooding before heading out to sea, the hurricane center said.

The government issued hurricane warnings from the port city of Lazaro Cardenas westward to La Fortuna, an area close to the resort of Manzanillo. A hurricane watch stretched further south, from Tepan de Galeana, northwest of Acapulco, to Lazaro Cardenas and from La Fortuna to Cabo Corrientes, close to Puerto Vallarta.

Dozens of small, coastal communities were on alert as forecasters warned the hurricane could dump up to 8 inches of rain.