Hurricane Trudy Forecast to Rapidly Intensify Into a Category 4 Storm

Hurricane Trudy formed early Thursday in the Eastern Pacific, poised to explode into a Category 4 storm or higher. Here is a look at who is in Trudy's line of fire, as well as a peek at a tropical storm that is eyeing the island of Guam.

Eastern Pacific Remains Flush with Tropical Activity

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is warning that Hurricane Trudy could become the ninth Category 4 storm or higher in the Eastern or Central Pacific of this busy 2026 season. Trudy jumped from a tropical storm to a hurricane early Thursday. Favorable environmental conditions in this part of the Pacific are expected to fuel the development of this latest tropical feature.

As of late Thursday, Trudy was spinning about 285 miles south of Acapulco as it moves to the north-northwest at 6 mph. The NHC expects that Trudy will continue to strengthen, becoming a major Category 3 storm or higher by Friday. A Hurricane Watch and a Tropical Storm Warning have been issued for a stretch of the southwestern Mexico coastline.

While forecasters are relatively certain that Trudy will go through the process of rapid intensification in the hours ahead, what is less clear is where the storm will track in the coming days. There is a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the atmospheric winds circulating near the storm.