Hurricane Nora sweeps past Puerto Vallarta, heads north

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Newly formed Hurricane Nora has swept past Mexico’s Puerto Vallarta area and is heading north for possible close encounters with other resorts farther north. Forecasters say Nora had top sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph) late Saturday. The U.S. National Hurricane Center forecasts that Nora will drag along the coast and gradually weaken to a tropical storm by Sunday night before heading into the narrow Gulf of California, passing close to the mainland resort area of Mazatlan. It is predicted to keep moving north, before weakening further and heading inland toward the Arizona border region. The weakened remnants might bring rains next week to the U.S. Southwest and central Rockies.