Mexican president urges residents to shelter as Hurricane Simon approaches

What the report says

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has urged people in coastal areas along the Pacific to stay indoors as Hurricane Simon threatens parts of western Mexico, according to Al Jazeera. The storm was moving offshore of Jalisco state on Sunday with sustained winds of at least 240km/h, after strengthening to a Category 4 hurricane over the weekend.

Al Jazeera reported that the heaviest impacts were being felt in communities between the Sierra Madre mountains and the coast, where torrential rain raised concerns about mudslides. The U.S. National Hurricane Center warned that Simon could bring more heavy rainfall to southwestern Mexico, with the highest risk of a direct strike centered on Cabo Corrientes in Jalisco, though it was still unclear whether the storm would make landfall.

Mexico’s civil protection authorities placed dozens of municipalities in Jalisco and Colima under their highest cyclone alert level, while many more were under a lower but still serious alert. Schools were suspended in affected areas and evacuations were underway in some places, as businesses in tourist destinations such as Puerto Vallarta boarded up windows and used sandbags.

The report also noted warnings from Jalisco Governor Pablo Navarro about dangerous marine conditions and high waves along the coast. The situation highlights the seasonal risk of powerful Pacific storms for Mexico’s western states and the need for rapid emergency response when coastal flooding and landslides are possible.