Powerful Hurricane Jimena scatters cruise ships heading to Mexico

mercedes · August 31, 2009

Hurricane Jimena is forcing cruise ships heading to Mexico to change course as it barrels northward toward the Baja Peninsula.

The Carnival Splendor, which departed Long Beach, Calif., on Sunday, will visit Catalina Island today instead of steaming southward toward Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan as originally scheduled. The 3,006-passenger ship will spend Tuesday in Ensenada, Mexico as it remains well north of the storm.

The Carnival Elation, which departed from San Diego on Saturday, will stay at sea today and visit Catalina Island on Tuesday instead of two days of calls in more southerly Cabo San Lucas. The 2,052-passenger ship will call in Ensenada on Wednesday.

The Category 4 storm also is likely to affect Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas, which departed Los Angeles Sunday on a seven-night cruise to the Mexican Riviera. The 3,114-passenger vessel is scheduled to visit Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta over the next few days.

As of 8:00 AM EDT, Jimena was 370 miles south-southeast of Cabo San Lucas and moving to the northwest at about eight miles per hour. The storm has maximum sustained winds near 145 miles per hour.

Calling the storm "extremely dangerous," the National Hurricane Center has issued a Hurricane Watch for the southern coast of the Baja Peninsula, including Cabo San Lucas. The Center says the the storm could reach the southern portion of the Baja Peninsula on Tuesday.