Patricia, the strongest storm ever recorded in the Americas, was Saturday downgraded to a tropical depression after it grew weaker over central Mexico, the Miami-based US National Hurricane Centre said. The threat of heavy rains continued, the centre said. Patricia was centered about 155 kilometers north-east of Zacatecas, Mexico, and moving north-east at 24 kilometers/hour, dpa reported. The hurricane centre forecast that the centre of Patricia will move across central and north-eastern Mexico on Saturday and Sunday, and will then degenerate to a low-pressure area. It warned of heavy rainfall across north-eastern Mexico and coastal sections of Texas. The central Gulf Coast could be affected by early next week, with the rains there likely to produce flash floods and mudslides. Earlier in the day, the Mexican government discontinued all warnings for the coast of Mexico. Patricia made landfall on the Pacific coast of Mexico's Jalisco state late Friday, initially packing winds of 120 kph.
