Hurricane Polo, one of the most powerful Pacific hurricanes ever recorded, slammed into Mexico this week after a stunning burst of rapid intensification.

Polo swelled from a tropical storm to a Category 5 monster within days, peaking at 285 km/h winds. It was the second-most-powerful Pacific hurricane on record by minimum central pressure since Patricia in 2015. The storm made landfall over Baja California Sur on Monday evening, September 28, then crossed the Gulf of California for a second landfall in Sonora early Tuesday.

Mexican authorities deployed around 7,000 navy and army personnel and opened 169 temporary shelters. Schools were closed and ports shut along the Pacific coast. In the resort city of San Jose del Cabo, police restricted beach access as large waves pounded the shore.

Two minors died and their parents remained missing after their home was swept downstream in Jalisco, according to the state civil protection department.

The storm dumped 4 to 12 inches of rain across Baja California Sur, and forecasters warned of life-threatening flooding and mudslides in steep terrain.