'Potentially catastrophic' Hurricane Otis heads for Mexico

Hurricane Otis on Tuesday strengthened to a powerful Category 4 storm as it barreled toward Mexico's Pacific coast, the US National Hurricane Center said, warning it could be "potentially catastrophic" upon landfall early Wednesday. With the hurricane expected to continue to strengthen, "Otis is forecast to be a potentially catastrophic Category 5 hurricane when the center reaches the coast," the NHC said, though it added that "rapid weakening will occur after landfall." Maximum sustained winds had increased to near 145 miles (230 kilometers) per hour.