Images: Mexico braces for Hurricane Patricia
Posted October 23, 2015 1:00 am
Hurricane Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day.
Residents of a stretch of Mexico's Pacific Coast dotted with resorts and fishing villages on Thursday had already boarded up homes and bought supplies ahead of Patricia's arrival. Some evacuations were reported in Puerto Vallarta.
With maximum sustained winds near 200 mph (325 kph), Patricia is the strongest storm ever recorded in the eastern Pacific or in the Atlantic, said Dave Roberts, a hurricane specialist at the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
An employee rolls up mats at a Sheraton beachfront hotel as staff prepare for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia, in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Friday, Oct. 23, 2015. Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day.
(AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Two men sit out by the beach as hurricane Patricia nears in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
A worker carries a table at a seaside restaurant preparing for the arrival of hurricane Patricia in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People preparing for the arrival of hurricane Patricia board up the windows of a seaside business in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People preparing for the arrival of hurricane Patricia board up a souvenir shop in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
A man boxes up his merchandise as he prepares for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia at a seafront jeweler in the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day. (AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia board up a souvenir shop in the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People preparing for the arrival of hurricane Patricia box their merchandise at a seafront jewelry shop in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia break down their souvenir shop in the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People walks past a shop with the windows taped in preparation for the arrival of hurricane Patricia in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People preparing for the arrival of hurricane Patricia board up and secure as much as they can at a seafront disco in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People watch as Papantla Flyers perform on the seafront in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding. (AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
An airline employee walks in the empty airport where all flights are canceled as Hurricane Patricia approaches the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Friday. Oct. 23, 2015. Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People sit on the floor in the nearly empty airport where all flights are canceled as Hurricane Patricia approaches the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Friday. Oct. 23, 2015. Patricia headed toward southwestern Mexico Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever in the Western Hemisphere that forecasters said could make a "potentially catastrophic landfall" later in the day.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
People throw stones into the ocean as hurricane Patricia nears in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. Hurricane Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast, on or near Puerto Vallarta, on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
As Hurricane Patricia approaches a man dozes on his luggage while waiting for a bus out of town at the bus station in the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Friday, Oct. 23, 2015. Patricia grew into a monster, Category 5 storm and bore down on Mexico's central Pacific Coast on Thursday night for what forecasters said could be a devastating blow, as officials declared a state of emergency and handed out sandbags in preparation for flooding.
(AP Photo/Cesar Rodriguez)
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