Storms cause 5 deaths in Mexico as flood risk eases in southwestern US
[October 13, 2026]
By FRANCISCO JAVIER CRUZ, MARTIN SILVA REY and JAIMIE DING
ENSENADA, México (AP) — Hurricane Simon pounded western Mexico with more
wind and rain Monday after tropical weather systems caused five deaths
and damage in Pacific coastal towns and resorts.
The eye of the Category 2 hurricane remained offshore as its outer bands
of winds and rain slammed communities between the Sierra Madre and the
Pacific Ocean near Puerto Vallarta.
Flood advisories were mostly lifted in the southwestern U.S. after the
remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel caused weekend flooding in Las Vegas.
Hurricane Simon batters Mexico’s Pacific coast
In Mexico's Baja California state, rescuers on Monday combed parts of
the coastal city of Ensenada where floodwaters swept away vehicles and
damaged homes. At least four people died in the state due to the impact
of post-tropical cyclone Rachel.
Resident Johana Nuriulu said the flooding began during the night,
shortly after heavy rain knocked out electricity. “We heard a loud noise
that sounded like ocean waves, but really loud,” she said.
Nuriulu said she went outside and discovered that a nearby stream had
overflowed, sending water rushing through the neighborhood. The waters
inundated streets and homes, sweeping away vehicles and other
belongings. “Everything was being dragged away” Nuriulu said.
Several communities were cut off by landslides and overflowing rivers
elsewhere in Baja California.
In the afternoon, the Mexican military used helicopters to rescue 32
people — 22 of them foreigners — from a ranch in Ensenada. Baja
California Gov. Marina del Pilar Ávila said 13 were youths.
The state Secretary of Security, Gen. Laureano Carrillo, said that some
of the group were missionaries meeting at the ranch and that among them
were Germans and Americans.
Baja California Civil Protection Coordinator Ignacio Lozoya said Monday
evening that four bodies had been recovered in Ensenada: a 13-year-old
girl on Sunday and two women and a 4-year-old boy Monday. Lozoya said
six people remained missing: four in Ensenada and two from the town of
San Felipe, a father and son who went fishing Saturday and did not
return.
According to Ávila some 14,000 federal and state personnel had been
deployed across Baja California to assist affected residents and respond
to the emergency.
To the south, Simon downed trees and electricity poles, blocked roads
and flooded homes in coastal towns of Guerrero state, including the
major seaport of Acapulco, Gov. Evelyn Salgado said at a news
conference.
A 71-year-old man died after a wall collapsed in Chilpancingo,
Guerrero's capital, Salgado said.
Simon had maximum sustained winds of 155 kph (100 mph) late Monday and
was expected to remain a hurricane through midweek, the U.S. National
Hurricane Center said Monday evening. It was slowly approaching the
western Mexico coast, where heavy rainfall may produce life-threatening
flooding and mudslides before landfall possibly late Friday.
In Puerto Vallarta, workers removed wooden panels from boarded-up
storefronts and businesses reopened Monday as rains eased. The popular
tourist destination's international airport suspended operations until
Tuesday morning.
“Personally, I think we should remain on alert because we don’t really
know whether it will arrive, move elsewhere or dissipate,” said Noelia
Carrillo, a tourism agency worker.
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A jogger passes a boarded up store after the passing of Hurricane
Simon in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026. (AP
Photo/Fernando Llano)
Rachel brings flooding to the US Southwest
Rachel weakened into a post-tropical cyclone as it moved north into
Southern California. The storm battered the coast with unusually large
waves, which tore apart a boardwalk and smashed into homes in Long
Beach. Some residents were forced to evacuate.
Las Vegas tied an all-time daily rainfall record for October after
receiving 1.08 inches (2.74 centimeters) of rain into Sunday morning,
according to the U.S. National Weather Service. The record was set in
1947.
Videos posted on social media showed a torrent of water rushing through
a street near the Las Vegas Strip, with a Ferris wheel and casinos in
the background.
Andrew Orrison, a weather service meteorologist, said localized flash
flooding was still a risk for the region Monday.
“We’ve seen the worst of what Rachel brought ... but unfortunately we
are looking at the disturbed weather still lingering,” Orrison said.
Flood advisories were mostly lifted by late Monday in Utah, Arizona and
elsewhere in the Southwest.
In Utah, dozens of runners and volunteers who were part of the Moab 240
ultramarathon were evacuated Sunday after being stranded by flooding.
The race goes through Canyonlands and Arches National Park.
The additional rainfall is not associated with Rachel, but a different
weather system moving across the West, Orrison said. The precipitation
is forecast to end by Wednesday.
Hurricane Isaias leaves thousands without power in the Southeast
Power was gradually being restored after Hurricane Isaias hit the U.S.
Southeast.
At least four deaths have been linked to Isaias, the first hurricane of
the Atlantic season, which came ashore as a Category 2 hurricane Friday
near Destin, Florida, a Gulf Coast vacation spot filled with high-rises
and tourist shops. The storm then roared into Alabama with
tropical-force winds before dissipating farther north.
About 106,000 customers remained without power by Monday evening in the
Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama, according to poweroutage.com.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he expected nearly everyone to have it
restored by Tuesday night and directed all schools to reopen Wednesday.
Drier weather is expected over the next few days across areas of the
mid-Atlantic down through the Southeast, including the southern
Appalachians.
It will feel “a little summerish” in some of those areas with higher
than normal temperatures this week, Orrison said.
___
Silva Rey reported from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, and Ding from Los
Angeles. Associated Press writers Fabiola Sanchez in Mexico City, Laura
Turbay in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Julie Walker in New York
contributed to this report.
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