Hurricane John lashes the tip of Baja peninsula

CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico -- Hurricane John roared over the lightly populated eastern tip of the Baja California peninsula late last night, but the storm appeared to spare the glistening resorts of Los Cabos, authorities said.

John brought hurricane-force winds to such coastal towns as La Tienda, where government officials said flimsy homes would not be able to withstand the storm's top sustained winds of 110 miles per hour.

The center of the storm hit land 20 miles northeast of Cabo San Lucas late last night. Forecasters said it would likely lash the state capital of La Paz before crossing the narrow stretch of land and heading out to sea.

The storm would continue to lash Baja's eastern tip for hours, said Chris Sisko, a meterologist at the National Hurricane Center. The twin resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose Del Cabo, however, appeared out of danger.

John wasn't likely to affect the United States; cooler Pacific waters tend to diminish storms before they reach California.

Some streets were flooded in Cabo San Lucas, but the water was merely ankle-deep at its highest. Stores reopened two hours after hurricane-force winds first lashed the peninsula.

Known for the rugged beauty of their unique desert-ocean landscapes, San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas on the southern tip of the Baja peninsula are studded with high-end golf courses.

Yesterday, thousands of tourists who couldn't get flights out prepared to ride out the storm.

Dale Broomfield, 26, a nurse from Adelaide, Australia, negotiated a makeshift plank bridge over water that rose up between his hotel and an adjoining convention hall-turned-shelter in Cabo San Lucas.

Nearby, Guadalupe Amezcua, a 50-year-old tourist from Mexico City, set up camp on one of many mattresses on the floor of the hall.

``This is like an adventure for us, but I've learned now: never travel during hurricane season," Amezcua said as she folded her clothes.