Tropical Storm Orlene forms off Mexico’s Pacific coast

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Tropical Storm Orlene formed off Mexico’s Pacific coast Thursday and was forecast to strengthen to a hurricane before making a projected landfall early next week.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Orlene had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (75 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 8 mph (13 kph). It forecast that Orlene would become a hurricane Friday night or Saturday.

The storm was centered about 290 miles (465 kilometers) south-southwest of Manzanillo. While still days away, landfall was expected to be in Mexico’s Sinaloa state.