Pacific Hurricane Season: America’s Other Tropical Link

Hurricane season in the Pacific begins two weeks earlier than in the Atlantic. Water temperatures and wind shear tend to become more favorable earlier in the year west of Mexico than in the Gulf or Caribbean. Parts of the American Southwest, including California, have gotten drenched by tropical storms and the remnants of hurricanes in recent years. Moisture is the biggest concern for the Southwest. Flooding has occurred following multiple storms in Southern California and Arizona in recent decades. Mexico frequently gets slammed by hurricanes with wind and storm surge threats on its Pacific coast and in 2023, Hurricane Otis struck Acapulco as a Category 5. Hawaii also sees impacts from the tropics once or twice a year.