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- Currently in NYC — October 25, 2023: A 10/10 fall day
Currently in NYC — October 25, 2023: A 10/10 fall day
Plus, Hurricane Otis makes landfall in Mexico as a Category 5.
Stacy Blundell & Eric Holthaus
October 25, 2023
The weather, currently.
Partly sunny and mild
Cancel all meetings! We have a picture perfect 70°F day with partial sunshine. Take the long walk or bike ride to work. We’ll have comfortable dewpoints and a breeze out of the southwest. I’m still just loving all this sunshine. Especially the way it reflects off the yellow leaves and illuminates the entire tree. October really is an amazing month. Get all that spooky stuff in now because in one week it’s November! I can hear Mariah Carey warming up from here!
Bike Forecast:
10 out of 10
What you need to know, currently.
Hurricane Otis made landfall early Wednesday near Acapulco, Mexico at Category 5 strength — the strongest hurricane landfall in recorded history on Mexico’s west coast — and the strongest ever in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
Initial reports show a partial collapse of a shopping mall, and palm trees stripped completely bare of leaves due to the strong winds. The city has almost completely lost power. The National Hurricane Center, in its final advisory before the storm struck, called it a “nightmare scenario.”
According to the Washington Post (gift link), Otis strengthened from a Category 1 to a Category 5 in just 12 hours — the fastest rate ever recorded for a hurricane in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, and one of the fastest rates in world history.
The 24-hour rapid intensification of #Otis is in rare air.
Otis (2023; EP): 95 kts -- Prelim
Ambali (2020: SI): 100 kts
Hagibis (2019; WP): 100 kts
Ernie (2017; SI): 95 kts
Patricia (2015; EP): 105 kts
Wilma (2005; NA): 95 kts
Karen (1962; WP): 100 kts
Vera (1959; WP): 105 kts— Steve Bowen (@SteveBowenWx)
Oct 25, 2023
Before Otis, no hurricane stronger than a Category 1 had ever made landfall near Acapulco in recorded history, and the storm’s extremely rapid intensification mean residents and visitors there had less than 24 hours warning before Otis made landfall. On a personal note, it’s hard to imagine going to bed expecting some rain and strong winds, and waking up to a city in catastrophic chaos.
Around the world, warming ocean waters are making extremely rapid intensification of tropical cyclones like Otis more likely. There have been only eight instances of storms strengthening as fast as Otis in recorded history (with comprehensive records dating back more than 70 years) — five of them have occurred in just the past 8 years.
What you can do, currently.
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One of my favorite organizations, Mutual Aid Disaster Relief, serves as a hub of mutual aid efforts focused on climate action in emergencies — like hurricane season. Find mutual aid network near you and join, or donate to support existing networks:
