Hurricane Vance Sparks JD Vance Memes as Mexico’s Pacific Coast Faces Dangerous Swells

Hurricane Vance briefly reached Category 3 strength off Mexico’s Pacific coast before weakening to Category 2, while its unusual namesake connection with US Vice President JD Vance sparked a wave of social media memes.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported that the storm had maximum sustained winds of 110 mph (175 km/h) late Friday, October 23. It was located approximately 385 miles (620 kilometres) south-southwest of Acapulco, Mexico, moving north-northwest at around 7 mph (11 km/h). Forecasters expected gradual weakening over the weekend, although dangerous ocean conditions remained a concern.

Vance’s outer bands were already bringing strong winds and rough seas to Mexico’s Gulf of Tehuantepec. The NHC warned that powerful swells could affect parts of southern and southwestern Mexico through the weekend and into next week, creating life-threatening surf and rip currents. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect in the Friday-night advisory.

While meteorologists tracked the storm, social media users seized on its name. Posts joking about the coincidence featured edited images placing JD Vance’s face inside the hurricane’s eye, alongside humorous comments portraying the vice president as the storm’s namesake.

However, the hurricane was not named after JD Vance. Its name came from a predetermined list maintained under the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the United Nations’ weather agency. The name followed Hurricane Trudy, which also strengthened off Mexico’s Pacific coast.

Storm names are selected through established regional lists, generally arranged alphabetically and alternating between male and female names in the eastern North Pacific and North Atlantic. The WMO says naming storms helps communicate warnings, raise public awareness, reduce confusion and support record-keeping.

The next names on the eastern North Pacific list are Winnie, Xavier, Yolanda and Zeke. Vance could return to the roster in 2032, unless the name is retired because of a particularly destructive storm.

Previous hurricanes named Vance formed in 1990 and 2014 off Mexico. Neither made landfall; the 2014 storm reached Category 2 strength before dissipating.

The current hurricane also emerged during an active Pacific season, following Nolo, Odalys, Polo, Rachel, Simon and Trudy. The Associated Press linked the season’s intensity to El Niño conditions and global warming, amid unusual weather patterns elsewhere in the region.