Hurricane Odile Downgraded To Tropical Storm, Will Bring Heavy Rain, Flooding To Central Peninsula

hurricane-1 — Tourists walk past debris after Hurricane Odile hit La Paz, in Baja California Sept. 15, 2014. Hurricane Odile whipped through the popular beach resorts of Mexico's Baja California peninsula on Monday, uprooting trees, downing power lines and forcing thousands of tourists to take cover in emergency shelters. Winds of up to 100 miles per hour buffeted shelters as one of the worst storms on record hit the luxury retreats of Los Cabos, battering Mexico's northwest coast with heavy rains that left plush hotels badly waterlogged. Reuters

Hurricane Odile became a tropical storm Monday evening as it crawled north along Mexico’s west coast, but it will continue to bring strong winds and heavy rain to central portions of the Baja California peninsula. The storm battered the southern peninsula resort towns between San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas early Monday, injuring dozens of tourists and residents and causing widespread damage to businesses, homes and hotels before weakening. Odile will continue to track northwest toward the Mexican mainland and southern Arizona.

tropical-storm-satellite — Hurricane Odile is seen moving up Mexico's Baja California peninsula in this NASA image taken at 4:00 p.m. EDT Sept. 15, 2014. Fierce winds buffeted homes, hotels and businesses as Odile, one of the worst storms ever to hit the luxury retreats of Los Cabos, battered Mexico's northwest coast with heavy rains. NASA

Meteorologists warn that Tropical Storm Odile could threaten towns along the east and west coasts of the peninsula and portions of the mainland coast with damaging surf and strong onshore winds. Central Baja peninsula communities can expect rainfall of 6 to 12 inches, with some areas getting as much as 18 inches, according to Weather.

hurricane — Hurricane Odile was downgraded to a tropical storm Monday evening and is headed north-northwest up the Baja California peninsula. National Weather Service

Parts of the U.S. Southwest could get drenched as well. Meteorologists expect a few showers and thunderstorms to affect Southern California, including San Diego and Los Angeles, but the worst of the storm will remain in the desert areas of Arizona and New Mexico. Cities likely to see thunderstorms and potential flooding include Flagstaff, Phoenix, Tucson and Yuma in Arizona, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, AccuWeather reported.

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