Tropical storm watches issued for Mexico’s Baja peninsula

MEXICO CITY – Authorities have issued a tropical storm watch for a stretch of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, where Tropical Storm Sergio is forecast to arrive later this week.

Sergio is expected to make landfall early Friday along a sparsely populated section of the peninsula that is home to a large nature reserve.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center says the storm threatens heavy rainfall in northwestern Mexico and then the U.S. Southern Plains and the Ozarks over the weekend.

Sergio’s centre was located about 990 miles (1,590 kilometres) west-southwest of the tip of the peninsula Wednesday morning.

The storm had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 kph) and was headed to the east-northeast at 12 mph (19 kph).