Hurricane Simon hits western Mexico after storms kill 5

Hurricane Simon continued to move slowly up the coast of west-central Mexico early Tuesday bringing wind and flooding rain after tropical weather systems caused five deaths and damage in Pacific coastal towns and resorts. The eye of the hurricane remained offshore as its outer bands of winds and rain slammed communities between the Sierra Madre and the Pacific Ocean near Puerto Vallarta.Simon's 90 mph strongest sustained winds made it a Category 1 storm, but the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said it had technically become a small tropical cyclone. Simon was some 100 miles west of Cabo Corrientes and heading northwest at 3 mph.Forecasters said it may weaken a bit but will likely maintain hurricaine strength through Wednesday.

Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 10 miles from Simon's core and tropical-storm-force winds extended outward up to 45 miles.Hurricane Simon rain and flood forecastAbout 5 to 10 inches of rain are expected from Simon across coastal west-central Mexico with as much as 15 inches in the state of Sinaloa by Thursday.Moisture associated with Simon is forecast to bring the potential for flash flooding from this evening through Friday morning to parts of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri, according to CBS News meteorologist Nikki Nolan. Rinfall could total 6 inches and perhaps 8 in some spots.Tropical weather turns deadly