Just as Hurricane Polo pushes into Baja California Sur, a new storm has taken shape farther south in the Pacific. Tropical Storm Rachel formed Sunday afternoon and could edge closer to the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula in the coming days, according to Mexico’s National Meteorological Service (SMN).
For residents and visitors still tracking Polo’s approach toward the peninsula, Rachel adds a second name to watch — though for now it remains a distant system well south of the region.
Where Rachel Is Right Now
Rachel developed Sunday, September 27, from what had been Tropical Depression Eighteen-E. As of the latest advisory, its center sat roughly 485 kilometers (about 300 miles) south of Acapulco, Guerrero, with maximum sustained winds of 65 km/h (40 mph) and gusts to 85 km/h (53 mph), moving west-northwest at a sluggish 7 km/h, according to Proceso.
Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center expect Rachel to strengthen quickly, becoming a hurricane by Tuesday and potentially reaching winds near 100 mph by midweek as it accelerates west-northwestward, according to Weathernews. The storm’s track is forecast to parallel the Baja California Peninsula while staying offshore over open Pacific waters through the weekend.
Why It Matters for Los Cabos
Southern Baja has had a busy stretch of tropical activity this season, following systems like Elida and the storm that nearly formed before Fausto took shape. Rachel is different in one key respect: current models keep its core well offshore, but forecasters note a slowly rising chance of tropical-storm-force winds reaching areas near Cabo San Lucas and southern Baja later this week as the system passes to the west.
Large swells are also part of the equation. Weathernews reports up to a 65% chance of tropical-storm-force winds developing in open waters near 20°N, 110°W — a stretch of ocean southwest of the peninsula — by Friday, which typically translates into building surf and rougher seas along exposed Pacific-facing beaches even without a direct hit.
What Officials Say
Mexican authorities are asking residents, beachgoers and boaters to take precautions around rain, wind and elevated surf, whether from Rachel or the more immediate threat posed by Polo, per the SMN advisory. Maritime operators along the southern Baja coast should expect rougher seas and building swells later in the week as Rachel intensifies farther offshore.
What Residents and Visitors Should Know
There’s no need for alarm yet — Rachel’s center is forecast to stay hundreds of miles from the Cabo coastline through the middle of the week. Still, with two systems active in the Eastern Pacific at once, it’s worth checking updates from Protección Civil (Mexico’s civil protection agency) before planning fishing charters, boat trips or beach days toward the end of the week.
Gringo Gazette South will continue tracking Rachel’s forecast track and update readers if the storm’s projected path shifts closer to southern Los Cabos.
