Superstorm Erick - the fifth named storm of the 2025 East Pacific hurricane season - is approaching the southern coast of Mexico with extremely dangerous strength" at level 4 (on the 5-level Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale, according to the latest storm information from the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) at 4:00 p.m. on June 19 (Vietnam time).
Erick had strengthened into a major hurricane just a few hours earlier, and the NHC warned that extreme winds with great destructive power and accompanying heavy rains would cause life-threatening flooding and landslides.
Erick strengthened into a major Category 3 storm at around 10am on June 19, after rapid strengthening, becoming the first major storm of this year's East Pacific typhoon season.
The US National Hurricane Center said the center of the storm is expected to make landfall in the western part of Oaxaca state or east of Mexico's Guerrero state in the next few hours, then continue moving deep into the southern mainland of Mexico.
A hurricane warning has been issued from Acapulco to Puerto Angel, while a hurricane monitoring warning has also been issued for the area west of Acapulco to Tecpan de Galeana.
classifying Erick on the Saffir-Simpson scale is based purely on wind power, which does not fully reflect the factors that typically cause the most deaths in tropical storms.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned: "water-related hazards - such as storm surge and inland flooding - have long been the leading cause of human losses during storms." In addition, the storm could also bring strong gusts of wind, dragon vuelling, high waves and dangerous offshore flows.
Erick is forecast to bring 200-300mm of heavy rain, with total maximum rainfall of up to 400mm in the states of Oaxaca and Guerrero, leading to the risk of flooding and life-threatening landslides, especially in steep terrain.
Erick is moving in a direction that could directly impact Acapulco, a city heavily damaged by Hurricane Otis in October 2023.
Superstorm Otis made landfall in Acapulco with Category 5 strength, killing dozens after winds soared to 185 km/h in just one day, reaching 265 km/h - the second fastest increase ever recorded in modern history, according to the NHC.
The early and fierce appearance of super typhoon Erick surprised many people. According to a hurricane forecaster, a super typhoon forming so quickly in June is rare and alarming.
