Hurricane Linda (2015)

Hurricane Linda

Hurricane Linda at peak intensity on September 8
Meteorological history
Formed	September 5, 2015
Remnant low	September 10, 2015
Dissipated	September 14, 2015
Category 3 major hurricane
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS)
Highest winds	125 mph (205 km/h)
Lowest pressure	950 mbar (hPa); 28.05 inHg
Overall effects
Fatalities	22 total
Damage	$3.59 million
Areas affected	Sinaloa, Oaxaca, Zacatecas, Revillagigedo Islands, Southwestern United States
IBTrACS / [1]
Part of the 2015 Pacific hurricane season

Hurricane Linda was a strong tropical cyclone in September 2015 that resulted in heavy rains across portions of Mexico and the Southwestern United States. The seventeenth named storm, eleventh hurricane, and eighth major hurricane of the season, Linda developed southwest of Mexico from a low-pressure area on September 5. Under warm sea surface temperatures and low to moderate wind shear, the system intensified into Tropical Storm Linda by September 6 and a hurricane by the next day. A well-defined eye soon formed within the storm's central dense overcast and Linda reached its peak intensity as a 125 mph (205 km/h) Category 3 major hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale on September 8. Thereafter, the storm moved into a stable environment and an area of lower sea surface temperatures, causing rapid weakening. Convective activity dissipated and Linda degenerated into a remnant low on September 10. The lingering system persisted southwest of Baja California, ultimately opening up into a trough on September 14.

In Mexico, the storm brought rainfall to nine states, causing flooding, especially in Oaxaca, Sinaloa, and Zacatecas. In Oaxaca, mudslides resulted in the closure of multiple highways and damage to over a dozen homes. Flooding in Sinola affected approximately 1,000 homes with hundreds damaged, prompting dozens of families to evacuate. Several small communities were temporarily isolated after flood waters covered bridges. Localized flooding in Zacatecas damaged crops and 25 dwellings; damage reached approximately 500,000 pesos (US$30,000). Although Linda did not directly impact land, moisture from the storm was pulled northeast into the Southwestern United States and enhanced the local monsoon. Los Angeles received 2.39 in (61 mm) of rain, contributing to the city's second wettest September on record. One fatality in the state occurred from a drowning at San Bernardino National Forest. Utah was impacted by major flash flooding incidents—with rainfall amounting to 1-in-100 year levels—which left 21 deaths in the state: 14 near Hildale and 7 in Zion National Park. This flash flooding ultimately made this the deadliest storm in the history of Utah since at least 1950.^[2] Damage across the Southwest amounted to US$3.6 million.