Miami (US), Jun 17 (AP) Tropical Storm Erick formed early Tuesday near southern Mexico in the Pacific Ocean and is expected to become a hurricane on Wednesday, the US National Hurricane Centre said.

The storm was about 692 kilometres southeast of Punta Maldonado, Mexico, with maximum sustained winds of 64 kph, the Miami-based centre said. It was forecast to approach the coast by late Wednesday.

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Erick was moving west-northwest at 19 kph.

A hurricane watch was posted for a stretch of the Pacific coast from Bahia De Huatulco in Oaxaca state to Punta Maldonado. A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions with winds exceeding 74 mph (119 kph) are possible in the area within two days.

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A tropical storm watch was in effect further south from Salina Cruz to Bahia De Huatulco.

Heavy rainfall was forecast for parts of Oaxaca and Guerrero with lighter amounts in Chiapas, Tabasco and Veracruz states as well as parts of El Salvador and Guatemala.

The rainfall may produce flooding and mudslides, the centre said, and storm surge could produce coastal flooding. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)