A tropical storm churning in the Pacific Ocean is generating hazards that stretch far beyond the California coast, with forecasters flagging significant impacts for portions of the broader Southwest — including elevated terrain — as the system moves toward land this weekend.
Rachel was spinning with maximum sustained winds near 60 mph as of early Saturday, and meteorologists anticipated the storm would come ashore somewhere along Mexico's Baja California Peninsula by Sunday. Though a strike on Baja remains the most probable scenario, the storm's outer rain bands could push near-tropical-storm-strength winds into the San Diego region before the weekend is over, and San Diego County has been placed under a tropical storm watch.
California being placed under any form of tropical storm watch is an extraordinarily uncommon occurrence, happening only for the second time ever. The sole prior instance came in 2023, when Hurricane Hilary prompted the National Hurricane Center to issue similar alerts along the West Coast; that storm also tracked into Baja California and generated watches and warnings covering the San Diego vicinity. Hilary had dropped below tropical storm intensity by the time it reached Southern California, though it still delivered heavy rainfall and powerful winds to the region.
Rachel's tropical-storm-force winds reach outward as far as 125 miles from its center, and the National Hurricane Center indicated that strong, gusty conditions tied to the storm are forecast to move into portions of the interior Southwest, with higher-elevation terrain expected to see the most pronounced effects. Across much of the Southwest, wind advisories and flood watches are already in effect.
Rainfall totals of one to three inches are projected for parts of the region, though isolated locations could record more than five inches. Those higher totals raise concern for rapid runoff and localized flooding, particularly in areas with steep or rocky terrain that sheds water quickly. Along the Baja California coast itself, a tropical storm warning is in place.
The path and strength of Rachel remained subject to change as the system continued to evolve, and residents across the Southwest were encouraged to follow updates from the National Hurricane Center and local emergency managers ahead of the storm's anticipated landfall.