Patricia - Strongest Hurricane Ever
October 23, 2015
Betty and Ray brought this storm to our attention yesterday when they sent us a photo of this very unusual sky. Beautiful, but ominous:Hurricane Patricia affects the evening sky in Nuevo Vallarta - 18 hours before it reaches shore with 160 mile an hour winds and lots of rain.
Shop keepers in Puerto Vallarta were boarding their windows in preparation for the coming storm. Look at that sky.
Here is what they had to say:
Very unusual looking out at the bay and ocean tonight. Patricia is way south of us but beginning to affect the skies. Lots of preparations being made for her arrival in the area. Should just be a wind and rain event here. All outdoor activities closed as of 7 PM tonite. This one snuck up on everyone! Beautiful sky tonite however! Stay in touch.
We also heard from individuals who are members of the resort staff. Here are their comments from this morning:
8:50 AM - October 23, 2015:
We are taking all possible precaution. We expect Patricia to hit land around 2pm. So far we have experienced only light raining but we are preparing as best as possible and the resort's staff is ensuring all to be safe.
The contact center is currently closed, and expect to be back, weather permitted, this Monday.
Our social networks will probably be the best source of information.
I am not sure if I will have Internet access as the hurricane hits, but please feel free to contact me and I will try to keep you posted. Although we will probably have more information later this weekend.
And....
9:05 AM - October 23, 2015:
Thanks for your concern. I think we will be ok. We´re of course preparing for the worst but thank goodness our home is 100% concrete. They began preparing early yesterday at the resort. I´m sure the guests will be taken care of. Our experience in Cabo will no doubt be a benefit to everyone while dealing with Patricia. Send me another message tomorrow and I´ll give you any information I have.
Best...
Another...
10:25 AM - October 23, 2015:
Hola Mr. Jones,
Thank you for your concerns. Luckily we've had plenty of warning to get ready. Right now everything is very calm in Nuevo Vallarta, almost no wind and the ocean is calm too, the tide is high but that's the only sign here right now, even birds by the beach are acting normally. It looks like the eye of the storm is hitting south of PV which is good for us because the mountains there will dramatically slow wind speed. The hotel has taken every precaution and treating this very seriously. Guests have been moved to the main parking building for special shelter, there are generators and plenty of supplies there. There is plenty of security too, the army and security forces are on alert for anything. Electricity and water will be cut off in the next couple of hours as a prevention. I will try to keep you posted on any new developments....
Thank you!!
Finally....
7:00 PM - October 23, 2015:
Everything still very calm right now, the following video was taken at the beach in Nuevo Vallarta at 7:20pm local time. Looks like its passing south behind the mountains. At this point we have no wind nor big waves, just rain. Will keep you posted on what happens tonight....
Thank you!!
Another comment was shared with us by BootsOnTheGround. Although not in Puerto Valarta, he shared an email he received from one of his contacts who is there now:
11:33 PM - October 23, 2015:
Hi Gordon,
Thank you for your good wishes. Our team pulled together and showed true character making sure every member was taken care of before anything else. I am officially reporting to you zero damage and zero injuries. We are blessed to have these mountains as our protector. They just stopped the largest hurricane recorded in history. Impressive.
Thanks for your thoughts.
We were not alone. This storm took the weather forcasters by surprise as well. It increased in intensity faster than any storm on record, having escalated from a Tropical storm to a Category 5 storm in 24 hours. That is fast!!
The AccuWeather.com storm track images show Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta could avoid a direct hit. We certainly hope so. Here are images from the AccuWeather.com website:
- 3 PM Eastern:
3 PM Eastern Time - Puerto Vallarta remains on the fringe of Patricia's track.
- 12 PM Eastern:
12 PM Eastern Time - Patricia's track is expanding to include Puerto Vallarta.
- 11 PM Eastern:
11 PM Eastern Time - Patricia's track fringe includes Puerto Vallarta.
AccuWeather.com's Becky Elliott provides an update to the weather pattern as of approximately 12 PM Eastern Time.
The storm is huge. Here is an image provided by AccuWeather.com:
Patricia Covers a Huge Area.
It is now about 6:15 PM in Puerto Vallarta. According to the National Hurricane Center, Patricia landed at a town called Cuixmala, which is near Emiliano Zapata. The winds are down to 165 mph and dropping, but they are still dangerous. These are comments from a storm chaser who is in a concrete building in Emiliano Zapata. Tune into Weather Underground. The commentators are talking to the storm chaser by telephone, and the conversation is quite interesting. That said, it looks as though Puerto Vallarta will be on the fringe of the power of the storm. Following is a photo of the distance between Cuixmala and Puerto Vallarta.
Patricia lands in Cuixmala.
Commentators indicate the storm is weakening as it moves inland. Expectations are the mountains will take steam out of the storm but it will likely drop a lot of rain.
The most important fact is Puerto Vallarta will not likely be severely damaged by Patricia. This is very good news for those of us who are looing forward to our pending trips in November.