Hurricane Blas prompts port closure in southern Mexico

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hurricane Blas is whirling off Mexico’s southern Pacific coast, prompting a port closure in a region trying to recover from an earlier storm. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Blas was centered about 220 miles south of Manzanillo, Mexico, Thursday morning with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph. It was heading west-northwest at 8 mph and was expected to remain over the ocean. Blas could still bring dangerous surf to the coast, and the port captain of Puerto Escondido has closed it to navigation. The region was battered when Hurricane Agatha, came ashore near Puerto Angel on May 30 with 105 mph winds.