In the worst case scenario come true, the southern tip of Mexico's Baja Peninsula took a direct hit from Hurricane Odile last night. The storm, a category three with winds of 125 MPH at landfall, caused colossal damage to the heavily-frequented tourist destination, including Cabo San Lucas.

Hurricane Odile made landfall last night around 12:30 AM EDT, or 9:30 PM PDT, wreaking havoc across the area that serves as home to hundreds of thousands of people. The storm followed along the eastern edge of the National Hurricane Center's cone of uncertainty, making a direct hit on the southern tip of the peninsula just a few miles east of Cabo San Lucas. The storm, still a hurricane as of 6:00 PM EDT, is making its way up the Baja Peninsula this evening.

Likely due to infrastructure issues, damage photos coming out of the region are sparse yet gut-punching. Most of the photos depict damage to resort hotels, but Odile's track caused major damage inland as well. The Los Cabos International Airport looks like it was bombed, with the large terminal housing the check-in counters completely trashed.

One of the more sobering reports of the storm comes from iCyclone's Facebook page. The team rode out the storm in Cabo San Lucas and live-Facebooked the ordeal from their hotel, saying that it was the worst cyclone they've ever lived through.

The feared right-front quadrant of the storm did a number on the hotel, but the most dramatic scene occurred after the eye passed to the north and the winds picked back up. Again, from iCyclone:

Midnight. CODE RED. At 11:46 pm, the backside of the eyewall hit— no buildup— just all of a sudden the howling and banging started up again. The hotel manager joked that it sounded like gunshots. Then at maybe midnight... BOOM!!!!! The entire glass wall of the lobby EXPLODED— with glass, pieces of building, everything flying to the other end of the lobby. Like an explosion in an action movie. A hotel worker and I ducked under the reception counter— I physically grabbed his head and pushed it under the counter. Glass was everywhere— my leg gashed— blood. We crawled into the office— me, the worker, and the manager— but the ceiling started to lift up. After five minutes of debate— breathing hard like three trapped animals— we made a run for it— went running like HELL across the lobby— which is now basically just OUTSIDE— and made it to the stairwell and an interior hallway. Two nice women dressed my wound. I don't know where my cameradude, Steven, is. I need to find him. People are scared.

Most news reports indicate that residents are just now starting to survey the damage, and no outlets are reporting any injuries or fatalities at the moment.

The moisture from the remnants of Hurricane Odile will move into the southwestern United States next week, potentially causing a similar situation to what we saw last week: record atmospheric moisture and the potential for major flash flooding.

[images via NASA and iCyclone]

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