The Miami‑based National Hurricane Center (NHC) classified Polo as an “extremely dangerous” storm on Tuesday night, noting that hurricane‑force winds extended up to 40 miles (65 km) from its center and tropical‑storm‑force winds reached as far as 105 miles (169 km).
While the storm was nearly stationary over the Pacific, forecasters expected it to begin a slow, sharp turn northwest during the night before moving generally west‑northwestward over the next several days. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said experts believed the cyclone was unlikely to make landfall, though the threat of heavy rain and strong surf remained.
In response, the Mexican navy shut down ports in Guerrero and Michoacán and warned civilians and fishermen to stay clear of the water. Schools were temporarily closed in several coastal municipalities, and authorities cautioned that flash flooding and mudslides could occur with as much as three to six inches of rain expected in Guerrero and Michoacán.
Local business owners felt the anxiety firsthand. Concepción López Villegas, who runs a seaside restaurant in Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán, said powerful waves were already lapping the shore and threatened to destroy her decades‑old establishment, describing the situation as a potential loss of heritage and livelihood.
Scientists highlighted Polo’s rarity. With maximum sustained winds comparable only to the 2015 Hurricane Patricia, the storm was described by University at Albany atmospheric scientist Kristen L. Corbosiero as “one of the strongest storms ever in the Pacific Basin.” Rapid intensification over the past 24 hours, researchers said, was fueled by an ongoing El Niño that has warmed Pacific waters and altered wind patterns, creating ideal conditions for such explosive growth, according to Colorado State University’s Philip Klotzbach.
Polo marks the third Category 5 hurricane of the 2024 Pacific season, following Genevieve and Lowell. The season also set a record for the longest start without an Atlantic hurricane, underscoring the unusual nature of the current tropical activity.
The U.S. Embassy in Mexico issued a weather alert urging American citizens to avoid beaches and heed local warnings, warning that even without a direct landfall, heavy rain could trigger life‑threatening flooding, mudslides, dangerous rip currents and rogue waves.