Hurricane Trudy strengthens near Mexico’s coast, but expected to weaken by Sunday

Hurricane Trudy gained some strength as it moved toward Mexico's western coast on Saturday, with forecasters warning it could strengthen a little more overnight before beginning to weaken on Sunday.

The US National Hurricane Center said Trudy was about 115 miles (180 km) south-southwest of Manzanillo on Saturday afternoon, with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph).

The hurricane was moving at about 10 mph (17 kph) and was forecast to approach the southwestern and west-central Mexican coast and pass near the coast overnight into Sunday.

Hurricane conditions are expected in the warning area on Saturday night, while tropical storm conditions are expected to spread across the region on Saturday afternoon and evening, the NHC said. Hurricane conditions are also possible in areas under a hurricane watch.

Trudy is forecast to bring 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 cm) of rain, with higher totals of around 12 inches, across parts of Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco through the weekend, raising the risk of life-threatening flooding and landslides, especially in steep terrain, according to the NHC.

Outer rain bands could produce 2 to 4 inches of rain, with isolated totals of around 6 inches, in Guerrero and Nayarit, where localized flash flooding is possible, the center said.

The NHC also warned of dangerous storm surge accompanied by damaging waves in areas exposed to onshore winds.

Swells generated by Trudy were already affecting parts of Mexico's southwestern coast and are expected to spread northward toward the country's west-central coast through the weekend, creating life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, the NHC said.

Mexico's national water agency, CONAGUA, has officially classified Trudy as a Category 2 hurricane.

-Reporting by Stefanie Eschenbacher and Adriana Barrera. Editing by Mark Potter and Franklin Paul/Reuters