Tropical Storm Trudy Is Forecast to Become a Major Hurricane as It Nears Mexico's Pacific Coast

The track is the harder part. The center called the forecast more uncertain than usual from Friday evening because computer models diverge, and said a track farther inland could weaken the storm quickly, per The Rio Times. In the Tuesday night advisory, the five-day odds of tropical-storm-force winds were 72 percent at Lázaro Cárdenas, 64 percent at Manzanillo, 58 percent at Zihuatanejo and 12 percent at Acapulco. Hurricane-force winds were put at 24 percent for Manzanillo.

What should travellers to Acapulco and Zihuatanejo know?

Swells from Trudy are expected to reach southern Mexico late this week, bringing life-threatening surf and rip currents, the hurricane center said. Acapulco and nearby Puerto Marques closed to small boats and coastal fishing from 3 p.m. on Tuesday until further notice, and Guerrero's civil protection agency asked residents to stay out of the sea.

The Rio Times said travellers heading to Zihuatanejo, Manzanillo or Puerto Vallarta between Thursday and Sunday should check flight status with their airlines, though it noted that no disruptions had been confirmed. The US State Department rates Guerrero at Level 4, Do Not Travel, and bars its staff from Acapulco, Zihuatanejo and Ixtapa. No school closures or evacuations had been announced in Guerrero as of Tuesday.

What about Hurricane Simon?

Simon, which shut Puerto Vallarta's airport last weekend as we reported in our earlier travel report, has weakened. The hurricane center's Wednesday evening advisory put it at 65 mph and drifting southwest at 5 mph, with interests in Baja California Sur told to keep watching.

With watches likely to go up soon, the next advisories, issued every six hours, will say where Trudy is likely to hit. Anyone with a trip to the coast this weekend should check with airlines and hotels before leaving for the airport.