Tropical Storm Lowell forecast to weaken in E. Pacific

Tropical Storm Lowell is expected to continue weakening on Saturday, National Hurricane Center forecasters said Friday morning.

Lowell, the 12th named storm of the Eastern Pacific hurricane season, as of 5 a.m. Saturday was moving toward the northwest at 8 mph some 1,055 west of the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula, forecasters said. It was packing 40 mph winds.

Lowell is weakening because it has reached cooler waters and a stable air mass. Lowell is expected to be downgraded to a remnant low by Sunday.

Tropical storm force winds currently extend outward up to 140 miles from Lowell’s center.

Forecasters said that surf generated by the storm will continue to affect the west coast of the Baja California peninsula and southern California. The surf will likely cause life-threatening waves and rip currents, they added.

National Hurricane Center officials in May predicted 14 to 20 named storms and seven to 11 hurricanes — including three to six major hurricanes — to form this year in the Eastern Pacific Basin. Overall, they gave the 2014 season a 50 percent chance of being above normal, 40 percent chance of being near-normal and a 10 percent chance of being below normal.

The Eastern Pacific averages 15 named storms, eight hurricanes and four major hurricanes each year, according to the center.

The Eastern Pacific hurricane season began May 15 and ends Nov. 30.