Mexico evacuates thousands ahead of hurricane

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People walk on a street in Cabo San Lucas in Mexico's state of Baja California, as Hurricane Jimena approaches Tuesday.

LOS CABOS, (Mexico), Sept 2 (AP): Heavy winds, battering waves and intense rain pummeled residents and tourists in this vacation resort as Hurricane Jimena, one of the largest hurricanes this year, raked the coast late Tuesday.
Baja California prepared shelters to hold up to 29,000 people as Jimena, which weakened to a still threatening Category 3, churned northward offshore. But the state's biggest resort, Los Cabos, appeared to escape major damage from the storm beyond power outages and mud-choked roads.
Jimena was on course to pass west of Los Cabos and up the coast early Wednesday, close enough to punish the picturesque beaches and fishing villages that fringe the harsh desert of the long Baja peninsula.
Ashley Legeyt, 62, a retiree from British Columbia who lives in Cabo San Lucas, pushed through the oncoming storm onto an exposed rocky point where he leaned against the onslaught of the hurricane's outer winds.
"It's like getting sandblasted with water!" said Legeyt, his back to the wind, sand and spray blowing in from the ocean. "It's quite strong."