Mexico, and essentially, the whole world braced for the impact of what The National Geographic called the "most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the western hemisphere."
However, Hurricane Patricia's aftermath miraculously wasn't as tragic as the similar-sized typhoon that hit the Philippines in 2013.
Compared to Typhoon Haiyan, Hurricane Patricia left with six deaths in its wake - a small number compared to the more than 6,000 killed in the Philippines two years ago. Most of Mexico's major buildings were also left intact in Hurricane Patricia's aftermath.
Before it hit land on Friday, Patricia had reportedly become a Category 5 storm, instilling fear in the hearts of everyone in its path. Kerry Emanuel, an atmospheric scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said that its sudden surge from a simple tropical storm could be due to "an unusually deep pool of warm water off Mexico's Pacific coast."
However, the storm's strength relatively diminished when it hit Mexican land.
By late Friday, President Enrique Peña Nieto declared that the Hurricane Patricia aftermath wasn't as bad as expected. Nevertheless, he warned residents that they should not "let our guard down."
According to Vox, the relatively small minimal damage could be chalked up to "luck and readiness."
Aside from orderly evacuations and preparations by the Mexican government, the storm also luckily passed through "lightly populated area." On the other hand, Haiyan left with more damage two years ago because hit several small islands and densely populated cities in the Philippines,
New York Times also noted that Typhoon Haiyan brought with it storm surges, devastating churches, schools and even evacuations centers. On the other hand, "the coastal terrain in Mexico differs considerably from eastern Leyte Island [where the eye of Haiyan passed through]."
Nevertheless, the storm still brought heavy rain even though it already lost much of its strength and was downgraded to a Category 1 by Saturday.
