Hurricane heading for Mexico

Jova is expected to make landfall over Mexico early next week. Photo / Thinkstock

Forecasters say Jova has become a hurricane out in the Pacific Ocean.

The US National Hurricane Center in Miami said Saturday evening that Jova had maximum sustained winds near 75 mph (121 kph) but was still far from land. It was moving east-northeast at 3 mph (5 kph) and was about 440 miles (708 kilometers) west-southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico.

No coastal watches or warnings had been issued, but current forecast models show Jova it could make landfall over Mexico by Tuesday or Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Irwin has weakened to a tropical storm in the eastern Pacific, about 930 miles (1,497 kilometers) southwest of the southern tip of Baja, California. It was expected to start moving toward land in the coming days. Irwin had maximum sustained winds of about 70 mph (113 kph).

In the Atlantic, Tropical Storm Philippe continued to weaken far from land.

- AP