Los Cabos Civil Protection issued a public warning urging residents and visitors to stay away from arroyos and drainage zones as thunderstorms pound the municipality’s northern mountain areas.
Director Francisco Cota Márquez said tropical moisture and a low-pressure system affecting the Sierra de la Laguna range are driving heavy rainfall. Communities already reporting rain include Las Cuevas, El Campamento, Santa Cruz, and La Ribera, all located in the East Cape corridor north of San José del Cabo.
Arroyo Crossings Pose Deadly Risk
The core danger is runoff water that rushes down stream channels, known locally as arroyos, during heavy rain. An arroyo crossing that looks shallow or dry can turn into a fast-moving torrent within minutes. Drivers should never attempt to cross a flooded “vado” (low-water road crossing), as even a small vehicle can be swept away in knee-deep current.
Officials stressed that weather conditions could shift rapidly in the coming hours. The Sierra de la Laguna, which rises above 2,000 meters (6,500 feet) behind Los Cabos, funnels storm runoff through narrow canyons and into the lowland arroyos that cross roads throughout the municipality.
Storm Season Already Active
The warning comes as Los Cabos enters its 2026 rainy and tropical cyclone season, which Civil Protection has said could be one of the most intense in recent years. The average annual rainfall for Los Cabos is typically between 200 and 250 millimeters, but a single tropical storm can dump that entire amount within 36 to 48 hours.
Earlier this year, Civil Protection reinforced evacuation routes and inspected temporary shelters near known flood zones. Cota Márquez has tied the heightened activity to the El Niño climate pattern, which tends to fuel storm development off the Baja California Sur coast.
Residents and visitors should avoid mountain roads and low-water crossings until the system passes. Civil Protection urged the public to follow official municipal channels for real-time updates.
The warning was first reported by the Los Cabos municipal government at loscabos.gob.mx.