Hurricane Hilary was downgraded on Saturday as a Category 1 hurricane even as the phenomenon has disrupted sports games and flights across the United States. The Hurricane was moving towards Mexico’s Baja California peninsula and US agencies have raised warnings of heavy rainfall and flooding in many areas.
Here are 10 points about the Hurricane Hilary:
1) The US National Weather Cente said in its latest advisory issued at 21:00 on Saturday that maximum sustained winds were 90 mph and the storm was located about 281 kilometres south of Eugenia, Mexico and 535 kilometres from San Diego, California.
2) Earlier, the National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said that Hurricane Hilary was weakening on its way to the West Coast and was expected to lose more strength and eventually become a tropical storm on Sunday, Reuters reported.
3) National Hurricane Centre’s deputy director Jamie Rhome while speaking about the new categorization for Hilary said, “This does not lessen the threat, especially the flood threat…Don’t let the weakening trend and the intensity lower your guard.”
4)One person died in the Mexican town of Santa Rosalia after a vehicle was swept away in an overflowing stream while the authorities were able to save four other people.
5) Forecasters say that the hurricane could go down in the history books as the first tropical storm that hit Southern California in 84 years and result in flash floods, mudslides, isolated tornadoes, high winds and power outages.
6) It isn’t clear if the authorities are considering the recent fatality related to Hurricane Hilary, reported AP. Videos posted by locals show water flowing through the town’s streets.
7) National Weather Service meteorologist Elizabeth Adams told AP that there is a prediction of rainfall up to 3 inches an hour across Southern California’s mountains and deserts from Sunday morning into the afternoon.
8)Hurricane Hilary brought heavy rain and flooding to the southwestern US and Mexico on Saturday, while up to 10 inches of rain is expected in southern California and southern Nevada.
9) White House on Saturday said that President Joe Biden has been briefed about the preparedness plans ahead of Hilary’s turn to the US.
10) “I urge everyone, everyone in the path of this storm, to take precautions and listen to the guidance of state and local officials,” President Biden said.
(With inputs from Associated Press)
