Mexico Issues a State of Emergency as Cyclone Bud Approaches

Mexico is buckling down after torrential rains from Cyclone Bud prompted officials to announce a state of emergency as the storm slowly closes in on Baja California Sur.

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"We ask the population to redouble their preventive actions," said Carlos Mendoza, governor of the state of Baja California Sur, a tourism-centric district with an estimated 21,000 visitors residing in local hotels.

With a sustained wind speed of 85km per hour and only 100km from shore, the tropical storm is expected to touch the southern coast either Thursday night or early Friday morning local time, the National Meteorological System (SMN) reports.

"The cyclone is forecast to weaken as it approaches the Mexican coast and impacted in the extreme south of Baja California Sur as a tropical storm," Conagua said.

Hotels have spent the past three days tying down palm trees and covering their picturesque windows with tarps as a precautionary measure.

Some of the main cities bearing the brunt of the storms are Sinaloa, Michoacan, Guerrero, Puebla, Veracruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas.

Mexican authorities issued an orange alert early Thursday morning to coastal towns, the country's second most severe advisory, warning civilians to prepare for continued flooding, possible damage and as much as 10cm of rainfall.