MEXICO CITY, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Mexico expects 33 cyclones on its coastline during 2019, the country's monitoring agency Conagua reported on Wednesday.
Of the 33 cyclones predicted, 19 are expected to be hurricanes and the rest tropical storms, announced the National Water Commission (Conagua) during the 2019 National Meeting of Civil Protection for the Rain and Tropical Cyclones.
The Conagua General Director Blanca Jimenez explained that the forecasts include 19 hazardous cyclones forming in the Pacific and 14 in the Atlantic.
The number of cyclones forecast for this year is above the historical average although the amount of hurricanes and tropical storms is lower than that registered during the 2018 season, according to Conagua.
"We have a weak El Nino phenomenon, so it is expected that this may influence the increase in temperatures and the possible formation of more cyclones," the official said at the event held in the costal city of Ixtapa Zihuatanejo in the Southern state of Guerrero.
El Nino is a natural phenomenon involving fluctuations of ocean surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, coupled with changes in the overlying atmospheric circulation. It has a major influence on weather and climate patterns over many parts of the world.
Conagua predicts that of the 14 cyclones from the Atlantic side, six will become tropical storms and eight hurricanes, including three that could reach category 3 or higher, the officer added.
"It is likely, very likely, that four to six of these cyclones will hit our country," Jimenez said before officials of the Armed Forces and Mexican security agencies, adding that the agency has a plan ready for the cyclone season.
According to the official, during the 2018 cyclone season, 37 hazards were registered in both coasts, including 11 hurricanes of category 3 or higher.
