A tropical storm again, Narda soaks Mexico's Mazatlan

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Tropical Storm Narda soaked the resort city of Mazatlan with sheets of driven rain and whipped palm trees with its strong winds on Monday after passing over Puerto Vallarta, another popular beach destination.

The storm was crawling up Mexico's west coast on a forecast track parallel to the shoreline. Narda had previously been downgraded to a tropical depression after moving over land, but it regained tropical storm strength after passing back over water.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Narda's maximum sustained winds had increased to 45 mph (75 kph), and its center was about 15 miles (25 kilometers) west-northwest of Mazatlan in the afternoon.

It was heading northwest at 15 mph (24 kph), and was expected to move over the Gulf of California near its eastern coast through Tuesday.

Classes were canceled as a precaution in Sinaloa state, which is home to Mazatlan.

The Hurricane Center said Narda could dump 3 to 6 inches (7.5 to 15 centimeters) of rain along the coast in Sinaloa and Nayarit, with isolated totals of 10 to 15 inches (25 to 38 centimeters. Significant rainfall was also expected in Jalisco, Colima, Michoacan, Baja California Sur and Sonora.

Authorities reported flooded roads and rivers, and the storm also toppled trees and billboards earlier in Acapulco, to the southeast in Guerrero state. Local media reported that a 26-year-old man died while trying to cross a river in San Pedro Mixtepec, Oaxaca state.

Authorities warned of life-threatening flash floods and mudslides, especially in mountainous terrain.

Meanwhile, Hurricane Lorenzo weakened to Category 2 force in the central Atlantic Ocean after earlier hitting Category 5, which made it the strongest storm ever observed so far north and east in the Atlantic basin.

The Hurricane Center said the storm had maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (165 kph) Monday. It was moving north-northeast at 15 mph (24 kph) and was centered about 1,025 miles (1,650 kilometers) west-southwest of the Azores, a Portuguese island chain.

Portuguese authorities issued a hurricane warning for the central and western Azores and a tropical storm watch for the eastern Azores.