 |  | | | | Hurricane Season 2006: Lane (Pacific)
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09.16.06
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Hurricane Lane Brought Havoc to Parts of Mexico
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This photo-like image of Hurricane Lane was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s
Terra satellite on Sept. 15, 2006, at 12:00 p.m. local time (18:00 UTC), before the storm had intensified and reached category 3 strength on Sept. 16.
Hurricane Lane slammed into Pacific coast of Mexico late Sat. Sept. 16 near the Villamoros Peninsula and the town of Culiacan as a major
category 3 storm. Following Hurricane John, it was the second storm to impact the region in the past month.
Blamed for three deaths, Lane flooded streets, forced airports to cancel flights and knocked out power in parts of Mazatlan, a resort and retirement community popular among Americans. Houses near the town of El Dorado, where the eye of the storm hit, were flooded before the storm lost punch and weakened to a tropical depression on Sun. Sept. 17. mage credit: NASA/MODIS Rapid Response Team -- Caption Credit: Mike Bettwy, RSIS/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Pacific Storm Lane Set to Become a Hurricane
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A Satellite View of Rain in Tropical Storm Lane
This image from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite was
taken on Sept. 13, 1926 UTC (12:26 p.m. PDT) before Lane developed into a
tropical storm. When this image was developed it was labeled "93E." That number
that was used to keep track of it when National Hurricane Center (NHC) was
watching it for possible development. The image shows a top-down-view of the
rain intensity obtained from TRMM's sensors. Estimated rain rates range from 1
millimeter to 30 millimeters (.3 to 1.18 inches) per hour. TRMM is a joint
mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA.
Lane Already Brought Rain to Mexico - More Expected
The next day, Thurs. Sept. 14, the depression became Tropical Storm Lane and
brought rains and winds to Mexico's Pacific coast including Acapulco. The storm
was packing maximum sustained winds of 45 mph on the 14th.
On Fri. Sept. 15, Lane was expected to produce coastal storm surge flooding of 1
to 3 feet above normal tide levels accompanied by large and dangerous battering
waves in areas of onshore flow near the path of the center of Lane. Total
rainfall accumulations of 2 to 4 inches are expected along the west central
coast of Mexico with isolated maximum amounts of 6 inches possible over the
coastal mountains. Total rainfall accumulations of 4 to 8 inches with possible
isolated maximum amounts of 12 inches are possible over the southern Baja
California peninsula. These rainfall amounts could cause life-threatening
flash floods and mudslides.
Where is Lane Headed?
At 11:00 a.m. PDT on Fri. Sept. 15, the center of Tropical Storm Lane was
located near latitude 20.2 north and longitude 106.3 west or about 135 miles
west-northwest of Manzanillo, Mexico and about 300 miles southeast of Cabo San
Lucas, Mexico. Lane was moving toward the north-northwest near 10 mph and this
general motion is expected to continue with some decrease in forward speed
during the next 24 hours. At that time, Lane had maximum sustained winds near
70 mph, and is expected to become a hurricane late Fri. Sept. 15. Minimum
central pressure was near 989 millibars.
The latest forecast track has Lane making landfall early Mon. Sept. 18 in the
vicinity of the city of Los Mochis, but that could change. Lane would then move
into north central Mexico. Lane's rains may later affect extreme southern
Arizona and New Mexico, and western Texas. For the latest track, visit:
+ National Hurricane Center. Images: Hal Pierce, SSAI/NASA GSFC -- Caption: Rob Gutro, NASA GSFC
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