Status of Recovery in Cabo San Lucas

Odile making landfall near Cabo San Lucas in September 2014  (Source: NOAA)

The eastern Pacific Ocean has seen an uptick in tropical storm formation during the last two years with a concurrent stretch of below average tropical activity in the Atlantic Ocean Basin.  That has manifested itself in a variety of ways on both sides of North America.  Mexico has seen more rain and flooding from tropical systems during the last two seasons in particular while the Atlantic Ocean Basin has had less.

Last season Hurricane Patricia became the most intense hurricane on record in the Western Hemisphere.  Patricia was a Category 5 hurricane that had 215 mph sustained winds at peak intensity and made landfall along the west coast of Mexico as a Category 5.  Meanwhile, the United States hasn’t had a major hurricane – Category 3 or higher – make landfall since 2005.  Although it didn’t have a direct impact on the United States, last season’s Hurricane Joaquin was a powerful Category 4 storm and was the strongest Atlantic storm since 2010. 

During the 2014 eastern Pacific hurricane season, an intense hurricane took an unusual track.  At peak intensity, Odile was a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Intensity Scale with sustained winds of 140 mph (on September 14, 2014).  Although, Odile weakened slightly to a Category 3 hurricane before making landfall with sustained winds of 125 mph, it was the strongest hurricane to make landfall on the southern tip of Baja California in more than forty years.  

Odile caused significant damage to the Mexican resort town of Cabo San Lucas.  According to the National Hurricane Center, Odile claimed 11 lives and caused roughly $1 billion in damage.  I was in Cabo San Lucas roughly two months later in late November 2014, and observed first-hand areas of widespread damage to both infrastructure and the local ecosystem.  In Cabo San Lucas for a few days again this week, I have had the chance to talk with some area residents who have confirmed what I observed, the resort town has largely recovered from Hurricane Odile.  

Some area resorts said they utilized stricter building codes when they rebuilt, ensuring property would be more resistant to damage in the rare event another major hurricane threatens the area.  Most hurricanes in the eastern Pacific Ocean track westward or curve back into mainland Mexico.  Tropical storms are rare and hurricanes even rarer still in Cabo San Lucas.  Fortunately, hurricane season is still several months off in both the Atlantic and eastern Pacific Ocean Basins. So there is plenty of time to review what you would do if a tropical system threatens your area.  As Odile illustrated, it only takes one storm to have a significant impact so it’s important to listen to your favorite meteorologists and local authorities whenever a tropical system approaches.