Cold front number 9 is now sweeping Mexico, interacting with a low pressure system, bringing rain, wind and hail to much of the country.

According to the National Meteorological Service (SMN), there will be rain in 29 of Mexico’s 32 federal entities on Thursday, with the heaviest downpours (50-75mm) expected in Coahuila, Nuevo León, Puebla and Tamaulipas.

There will also be heavy rain (25-50mm) in areas of Chiapas, Chihuahua, Mexico City, Colima, Durango, México State, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Morelos, Oaxaca, Querétaro and Tlaxcala, as well as scattered showers over much of the rest of the country.

The SMN warns that the heaviest rains will be accompanied by lightning and hail, and could cause flooding in low-lying areas. Residents are advised to stay alert for recommendations from Civil Protection authorities.

There will also be winds of 60-80 km/h and possible tornado formation in Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas. Winds of 40-60 km/h are predicted across much of the rest of the north of the country.

Temperatures will drop as low as -5 degrees Celsius in mountainous areas of Baja California, Chihuahua and Durango, and reach as high as 40 degrees Celsius in parts of Campeche, Chiapas, Colima, Guerrero, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas and Yucatán.

The forecast for Mexico City is cloudy, with possible rain, lightning and hail in the afternoon.

This winter season, Mexico is predicted to see 56 cold fronts – banks of cold air that move down from Canada and the United States, causing temperatures to drop and precipitation to increase across the country. 

With reports from El Financiero