Hurricane Hillary hits Mexico

Hurricane Hilary formed on Thursday off the south-western Pacific coast of Mexico and was forecast to strengthen, the US National Hurricane Centre said. Hilary was packing winds of near 75 miles (120 kilometres) per hour, "and Hilary could become a major hurricane by Friday night," the Miami-based NHC said. At 1500 GMT the centre of the hurricane was located some 140 miles south of the Mexican resort city of Acapulco and moving in the open ocean to the northwest at 10 miles per hour, reports AFP. "On the forecast track the core of Hilary will continue to move parallel to the southwest coast of Mexico." Mexican authorities warned that tropical storm-force winds and heavy surf could affect the coast, but Hilary was not seen as making a direct hit on land. However the NHC warned that "any deviation to the north of the track could bring stronger winds to the coast." Hilary is expected to drop between three and five inches (7.6 to 13 centimetres) across the southern Mexican state of Guerrero and south-western Oaxaca, "with isolated amounts of 10 inches possible." Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 15 miles (25 kilometres) from the centre, and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 75 miles, the NHC said.