Tropical Storm Vance to drench Sinaloa, Nayarit and Durango
Mexico's weather service forecasts very heavy rain on Wednesday across three northwestern states. The U.S. hurricane center expects the storm to fade by Thursday.
Mexico's National Meteorological Service (SMN) is forecasting 75 to 150 millimeters (3 to 6 inches) of rain on Wednesday across the southern part of Sinaloa, northern Nayarit and the south of Durango. It calls the rain very heavy, with intense downpours in places.
The cause is Tropical Storm Vance, which is still at sea. The U.S. National Hurricane Center put it about 390 kilometers (240 miles) southwest of Cabo Corrientes, in Jalisco state. Its sustained winds are 65 km/h (40 mph), and it is moving north-northwest at 17 km/h (10 mph). By evening it should turn north and pass west of the Islas Marías.
The threat is the water, not the wind.
Through Thursday, the center expects 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) over central and southern Sinaloa, the far southwest corner of Durango and the far northwest corner of Nayarit, with isolated totals of up to 7 inches in Sinaloa. It warns of flooding and mudslides on steep terrain. The two agencies do not disagree: the SMN is forecasting for Wednesday alone, while the center is counting two days.
Along the coast, the SMN expects winds of 10 to 20 km/h with gusts of 30 to 50 km/h in Sinaloa and Nayarit, and gusts of up to 40 km/h in Durango. Waves will reach 1 to 2 meters. Mazatlán recorded 24 millimeters in the 24 hours before the forecast. The center had no coastal watches or warnings in effect.
Vance reached hurricane strength over open water. The hurricane center expects it to hold its strength through the day, weaken gradually starting tonight and become a remnant low on Thursday.
