Orlene weakens from a hurricane to a tropical depression as it dissipates over Mexico

CNN

By Mike Saenz and Amir Vera, CNN

A hurricane that hit southwestern Mexico has weakened to a tropical depression Monday afternoon, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Tropical Depression Orlene had strengthened to a Category 4 hurricane, but ultimately hit southwestern Mexico — just north of the Nayarit and Sinaloa border — as a Category 1 around 7:45 a.m. local time with winds at around 85 mph, according to the NHC. The storm brought heavy rain, severe flooding and created mudslides in popular resort areas along the west coast of the country.

By 4 p.m. ET, the storm had weakened and now has sustained winds of 35 mph while moving north-northeast at 9 mph, the NHC said.

There are currently no coastal watches or warnings in effect for the area, the center’s 4 p.m. update said. The center of the storm is expected to move further inland over west-central Mexico Monday evening.

“Additional weakening is forecast, and Orlene is forecast to dissipate later tonight,” the NHC said.

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CNN’s Robert Shackelford contributed to this report.