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The sun sets, as Hurricane Willa makes landfall, in Mazatlan, Mexico, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. Emergency officials said they evacuated more than 4,250 people in coastal towns and set up 58 shelters ahead of the dangerous Category 3 storm. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

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A toddler plays with a puppy in a temporary shelter before the arrival of Hurricane Willa, in Mazatlan, Mexico, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. Willa is headed toward a Tuesday afternoon collision with a stretch of Mexico's Pacific coast, its strong winds and high waves threatening high-rise resorts, surfing beaches and fishing villages. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

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A couple and their dog stand of the seawall prior the landfall of Hurricane Willa, in Mazatlan, Mexico, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. Emergency officials said they evacuated more than 4,250 people in coastal towns and set up 58 shelters ahead of the dangerous Category 3 storm. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

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A surfer rides a wave before the arrival of Hurricane Willa, in Mazatlan, Mexico, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. Emergency officials said they evacuated more than 4,250 people in coastal towns and set up 58 shelters ahead of the dangerous Category 3 storm. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Hurricane Willa weakens to tropical storm but torrential rains to continue in west-central Mexico

By Associated Press AP

PUBLISHED 2:12 PM ET May. 09, 2019

MAZATLAN, Mexico (AP) — The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Willa has weakened to a tropical storm but torrential rains will continue in west-central Mexico.

The meteorologists said Wednesday that Willa is moving toward the northeast at speeds near 20 mph (32 kph), movement expected to continue during the next 12 hours.

The Hurricane Center added that the government of Mexico has discontinued all coastal tropical cyclone warnings for the country.

Willa came ashore about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Mazatlan, a resort city that is home to high-rise hotels and about 500,000 people, including many U.S. and Canadian expatriates.