Hurricane Odile grows near Mexico

MEXICO CITY – A rapidly strengthening Hurricane Odile intensified into a strong storm Saturday night and appeared headed for a possible close brush with the southern end of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Odile’s maximum sustained winds had increased to 110 mph by Saturday night, just below a Category 3 hurricane. The storm’s center was about 410 miles south-southeast of the southern tip of Baja California and moving faster to the north-northwest, at 12 mph.

Mexican officials posted a hurricane warning from Los Cabos at the peninsula’s tip northward along the west coast to Cabo San Lazaro and the east coast to La Paz. High winds and dangerous surf were expected along the shore beginning today, and heavy rains were possible for Baja and nearby mainland areas.