Rare trio of Pacific hurricanes fuelled by historic El Niño

WASHINGTON, DC, United States — A rare trio of hurricanes were churning through the Pacific Ocean on Thursday, which scientists attributed to waters warmed by a historically strong El Niño phenomenon. Tropical Storm Marie strengthened into a hurricane late Wednesday off the coast of Baja California, lining up behind hurricanes Karina and Lowell — both rated as major Category 4 — which were making their way westward across the Pacific. Three tropical cyclones are “definitely rare to see”, Julia Cole, a climate scientist at the University of Michigan, told AFP.

“El Niño warming sets the stage for these storms, which are fuelled in large part by warm waters. When the tropical Pacific is warmer than normal, we see an increase in strong storms,” Cole said. Lowell was about 450 miles (725 kilometres) south of Hilo, Hawaii, and “is expected to remain a major hurricane for the next several days” as it moves west, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

“Swells from Lowell are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions in portions of the Hawaiian Islands during the next several days,” the NHC said, adding that its long-range track and intensity forecasts were “more uncertain than usual”. Hawaii is still recovering from the impacts of Hurricane Lala, which brushed past the southern part of the Big Island last month, bringing destructive winds and severe flash floods. The NHC said late Wednesday that Karina weakened slightly as it moved north-west, but is likely to remain a hurricane for the next couple of days.

Lowell and Karina are trailed to the east by Marie, which was 380 miles south-west of the southern tip of Baja California, generating swells impacting portions of the coast of south-west Mexico and the Baja California Peninsula that will likely spread northward to southern California over the weekend. Warm waters provide fuel for storms, and El Niño’s effect on the atmosphere leaves little vertical wind shear over the Pacific, creating favourable conditions for hurricanes to intensify, said Benjamin Kirtman, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Miami. HONOLULU, Hawaii — A large fallen tree blocks Young Street in Honolulu, Hawaii, on August 16, 2026 after Hurricane Lala.Photo: AFP “The climate system has significantly warmed over the last 20 years or so,” he told AFP.

The sea surface temperature anomaly — how much warmer…