Tropical Storm Xavier Forms in Eastern Pacific

Tropical Storm Xavier, which formed southwest of central Mexico and is churning out in the eastern Pacific Ocean, is already bringing heavy rains to the region, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center on Nov. 4.

The NHC said in a 9 a.m. advisory that Xavier is about 115 miles southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico, and has maximum sustained winds of 50 mph while moving north at 6 mph.

There are no coastal watches or warnings in effect, the agency said, but it stressed that interests along the southwestern coast of Mexico should monitor the progress of the storm.

Tropical Storm Xavier formed southwest of central Mexico in the eastern Pacific Ocean, and according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center on Nov. 4, already is bringing heavy rains to the region. NHC

Xavier is expected to make a “turn toward the northwest and west-northwest” and a “similar forward speed is expected tonight and on Monday. It’s followed by a westward motion by Tuesday. “On the forecast track, Xavier’s center is expected to remain offshore the coast of southwestern Mexico and begin to move farther away from the coast tonight and on Monday,” the NHC said.

According to the agency, “Weakening is forecast during the next few days, and Xavier is expected to degenerate into a remnant [low-pressure system] by Tuesday.”

Hurricane Season

The 2018 Atlantic hurricane season officially started June 1 and officially ends Nov. 30, the NHC said. The peak of each hurricane season is typically late August to early September, but early October also can see many hurricanes, AccuWeather noted.

Regarding November hurricanes, “The last season to produce a November named storm was” in 2015. The tropical depression that would eventually become Hurricane Kate formed southeast of the Bahamas” on Nov. 8, forecasting website WeatherBug noted.

Hurricane Kate “quickly strengthened and became a tropical storm” and became a hurricane by Nov. 11, it added.

While the storm didn’t make landfall, the storm weakened an eventually “merged with a cold front over the northern Atlantic” and spawned “wild autumn weather, including high winds and some flooding in Ireland and Wales,” WeatherBug said.

Another storm named Hurricane Kate, which formed in November 1985, did $300 million worth of damage and killed 15 people, according to reports.

Hurricane Michael Update

The death toll from Hurricane Michael, which made landfall in Florida last month, was raised to 45 across several states, according to The Associated Press. Florida Emergency Management Division spokesman Alberto Moscoso said last week that two more deaths were noted in Bay County, Florida. Twenty-one people have been confirmed dead in the county.

Meanwhile, officials in Jackson County, Florida, also confirmed three more deaths to AP. Three more deaths were also recorded in Washington County.

Michael hammered the Florida Panhandle on Oct. 10, bringing near-Category 5 winds of 155 mph. Mexico Beach and Panama City, both in Bay County, were the hardest-hit areas.