Hurricane Otto strengthened Tuesday afternoon to become the seventh hurricane of the 2016 season.
- Otto strengthens to hurricane ahead of landfall
- Storm moving west at 2 mph
- Expected to make landfall in Central America
- RELATED: Track the tropics
Sustained winds have bumped up to 75 mph and could strengthen a little more the next couple of days.
Located at 10.5 north, 79.6 west, Otto is about 235 miles east of Limon, Costa Rica and moving west at a very slow 2 mph.
It’s expected to make landfall somewhere near the Costa Rica/Nicaragua border on Thanksgiving afternoon as a Category 1 hurricane.
Parts of Central America could pick up between 6 to 12 inches of rain, with isolated pockets of 15 to 20 inches possible across northern Costa Rica and southern Nicaragua. This will lead to life-threatening flash flooding and mud slides.
Watches and warnings are posted up and down the east coast of Central America. Otto will not impact the United States.
The rest of the tropics will remain quiet, with hurricane season officially ending Nov. 30.
