Hurricane Polo Makes Second Mexican Landfall Near Guaymas After Slamming Baja California Sur
Hurricane Polo Makes Landfall Near Guaymas After Category 2 Strike on Baja California Sur
MIAMI / HERMOSILLO — Hurricane Polo came ashore on mainland Mexico Tuesday near Guaymas, Sonora, hours after crossing Baja California Sur as a Category 2 storm, completing a rare two-landfall path that began as one of the strongest eastern Pacific hurricanes of 2026.
The National Hurricane Center said the center was just inland over Sonora near 28.0°N, 110.6°W around 11 a.m. MST — about 20 miles east of Guaymas and 145 miles north-northeast of Loreto — with maximum sustained winds near 75 mph and a central pressure of 984 mb. Polo was moving northeast at about 17 mph and was expected to accelerate as it climbed the rugged interior of northwestern Mexico. Forecasters said the surface circulation should collapse within 12 to 24 hours, with the system forecast as a weakening inland remnant by late Tuesday and dissipated as a tropical cyclone by Wednesday.
The first landfall came around 06:00 UTC Tuesday (11 p.m. Monday MST) on the west coast of Baja California Sur, just south of Las Barrancas in the municipality of Comondú. NHC later judged that Polo was likely a Category 2 hurricane at that time, with winds in the 90–95 kt range (about 105–110 mph) in some analyses. Crossing the peninsula knocked the storm down, but it emerged over the warm Gulf of California still a hurricane and made its second landfall as a Category 1. Mexico discontinued warnings for Baja’s east coast after the center moved inland over Sonora. Hurricane conditions were still expected in southern Sonora through the morning, with tropical-storm conditions spreading across northwestern Mexico and a dangerous storm surge along stretches of onshore wind.
From record Category 5 peaks to a rainmakerPolo is the 17th eastern Pacific tropical cyclone of 2026 (EP172026), the season’s 18th named storm, seventh hurricane, fifth major hurricane, and a record-tying third Category 5. It formed Sept. 20 and exploded to Category 5 by Sept. 22. After eyewall replacement cycles, it reached Category 5 intensity three separate times — the first Pacific hurricane on record to do so — with peak winds near 180 mph and pressure as low as about 900 mb on Sept. 25 before shear and cooler waters finally took hold. The storm then recurved northeast around a ridge over northern Mexico and toward a mid-latitude trough over the southwestern United States.
Rain, not peak wind, is now the main threat. NHC expected 4 to 6 inches across southern and central Sonora, isolated totals near 8 inches, and another 1 to 2 inches over Baja California Sur after earlier forecasts of 6 to 12 inches on the peninsula. Life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides remain possible in steep terrain. Puerto San Carlos saw a containment berm fail under surge during the Baja strike. Dangerous surf and rip currents were forecast to linger along northwest Mexico and Baja for another day.
Remnants aim at the U.S. SouthwestEven after Polo’s core dies over the Sierra Madre, its leftover spin is forecast to phase with a mid-latitude trough digging into the Four Corners. That combination is expected to feed heavy rain, flash flooding, and gusty winds across the Southwest and southern High Plains through Wednesday. NHC warned that mid-level remnants could still produce strong gusts over high terrain in northwest Mexico, southern New Mexico, and far western Texas. Arizona already saw flash-flood watches and water rescues Tuesday as Polo’s moisture overspread the region. National Weather Service hydrologists noted that arid canyons and sparse vegetation make the Southwest especially prone to sudden runoff.
Polo’s long life also included a westward loop that kept its Category 5 core offshore of mainland western Mexico earlier in the week, sparing Guerrero a direct hit. Tropical Storm Rachel was moving separately along Mexico’s coast. For communities from Comondú to Guaymas, the story is now floodwater, downed lines, and a weakening center moving inland. For Arizona, New Mexico, and west Texas, the hurricane is gone — but its rain is not.
NHC Hurricane Polo Discussion No. 36 (8 a.m. MST Sept. 29, 2026): https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/MIATCDEP2.shtml
NHC archive / forecast discussion products: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2026/ep17/
Stormdom / NHC public advisory summary (Guaymas landfall): https://www.stormdom.com/tracking/pacific-e2.php
Wikipedia overview of Polo’s Category 5 history and landfalls: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Polo
KTLA on Baja landfall and U.S. remnant threats: https://ktla.com/weather/hurricane-polo-makes-landfall-in-baja-california-as-other-regions-brace-for-impacts/
KOAT / NHC landfall details near Las Barrancas: https://www.koat.com/article/hurricane-polo-makes-landfall-in-baja-california/73939873
CBS News on Southwest flooding threat: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hurricane-polo-category-5-mexico-life-threatening-flooding/
BajaStorms local advisory summary: https://bajastorms.com/storms/2026-polo
RainViewer intensity history: https://www.rainviewer.com/storm-tracker/hurricanes/polo-2026.html
Hurricane Polo Makes Landfall Near Guaymas After Category 2 Strike on Baja California Sur
Hurricane Polo hit Baja California Sur as a Cat 2, then made a second landfall near Guaymas, Sonora, on Sept. 29, 2026, as a Cat 1. Remnants threaten flooding in Arizona, New Mexico and west Texas.
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