US warns nationals in Mexico over Hurricane Rina

WASHINGTON - The United States urged its nationals on Tuesday to consider leaving Mexico as Hurricane Rina bore down on tourist resorts on the Yucatan peninsula like Cancun, Cozumel and Playa del Carmen.

"The storm is expected to strengthen further before it makes landfall, most likely early on Thursday, October 27 somewhere between Cancun and Tulum in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo," the State Department travel warning said.

Already packing 110-mile (175-kilometer) per hour winds, Rina was forecast to become a major category three storm by early Wednesday before crashing into the Mexican coast near the sprawling resort city of Cancun on Thursday.

A hurricane watch was already in effect from Cabo Grueso north to Cancun, including the tourist areas of Tulum, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Puerto Morelos and Cancun.