Americas News
Hurricane Jova hits Mexico with only minor damage
Oct 12, 2011, 20:14 GMT
Mexico City - Hurricane Jova lost strength quickly after reaching Mexico's Pacific coast early Wednesday.
The US National Hurricane Centre in Miami downgraded Jova to a tropical storm, with maximum sustained winds of 80 kilometres per hour. Jova was expected to weaken further to a tropical depression Thursday.
Local media reported downed trees and walls on Wednesday in coastal settlements where the storm made landfall with hurricane-force 160-kilometre-per-hour winds. Mexican authorities still warned of the risk of mountain landslides and flooding in low-lying areas.
Tropical Storm Irwin, following Jova's path toward Mexico, is expected to weaken to a tropical depression before reaching land.
The official hurricane season lasts until the end of November. Most of this year's Atlantic hurricanes and eastern Pacific cyclones did not make landfall.
