India, Sept. 22 -- Hurricane Polo is a powerful Category 5 storm in the eastern Pacific, off the southwestern coast of Mexico.

Polo began as a tropical depression on September 20 and strengthened into a tropical storm the following day. It then intensified at an extraordinary pace, with its winds increasing by about 110 mph in just 24 hours. By September 22, Polo had reached Category 5 strength.

According to Tuesday's advisory from the US National Hurricane Center, Polo is the strongest eastern Pacific storm so far this year. Its maximum sustained winds have reached 165 mph (265 km/h) and could increase to 180 mph overnight.

Meteorologist Nick Arman of AccuWeather told Bloomberg, "It is the most intense one we have seen so far this yea...