CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Hurricane Newton slammed into the twin resorts of Los Cabos on the tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula Tuesday morning, knocking out power in some places as stranded tourists huddled in their hotels.
Newton made landfall as a Category 1 storm with winds of 90 mph, pelting the area near Cabo San Lucas with heavy rain and blowing down palm trees along the coastal boulevard.
It then moved inland, retaining its winds almost unabated, and by early Tuesday was located 50 miles northwest of Cabo San Lucas.
Mexico extended hurricane warnings for the peninsula and also a stretch of the mainland coast across the Gulf of California. The U.S. National Hurricane Center predicted Newton could cross the peninsula as a hurricane and re-enter the gulf.
Newton was forecast to dump 8 to 12 inches of rain on Baja California Sur state with isolated maximums up to 18 inches, and heavy rains were also expected for five other states. Newton could even reach the U.S. border at Arizona as a tropical storm, according to forecasts.
Boat owners pulled fishing craft in ahead of the storm’s arrival and business owners nailed boards and sheets of plywood over windows in Cabo San Lucas.
About 14,000 tourists remained in Los Cabos as of Monday night as airlines cancelled flights out as the storm approached, said Genaro Ruiz, the state tourism secretary. Ruiz said tourists had been advised to remain in their hotels.
“The most important thing is to stay at home,” said Carlos Godinez, a defense official for Baja California Sur. “If there is nothing that requires you to be outside, take shelter with your family.”
Officials evacuated low-lying areas and opened 18 shelters at schools in the two resorts and 38 more in the state, while warning people against panic buying.
“There is no need for mass buying,” Los Cabos Mayor Arturo de la Rosa Escalante said. “There is enough food and fuel for the next 20 days.”
The hurricane center said the storm could dump 1 to 3 inches of rain over parts of Arizona and New Mexico through Thursday, threatening flash floods and landslides.
