Hurricane Patricia, one of strongest storms ever, slams into Mexico

Tourists, who were evacuated from their hotel arrive at the University of Puerto Vallarta used as a shelter as Hurricane Patricia approaches the Pacific beach resort of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico October 23. 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

PUERTO VALLARTA- Hurricane Patricia, one of the most powerful storms on record, struck Mexico's Pacific coast on Friday, struck Mexico's Pacific coast on Friday with destructive winds that tore down trees, moved cars and forced thousands of people to flee homes and beachfront resorts.

The storm slammed into a stretch of sparsely populated coastline near the popular beach getaway of Puerto Vallarta, where 15,000 tourists were evacuated to avoid the driving rain and winds of 160 miles per hour (266 km per hour).

Visitors and residents weathered the Category 5 hurricane in emergency shelters hoping it would not do as much damage as the last storm of this magnitude, Typhoon Haiyan, which killed thousands of people in the Philippines in 2013. There were no initial reports of casualties after the storm hit northwest of Manzanillo.

"The winds are really strong. It's amazing, even the cars are moving," said Laura Barajas, a 30-year-old hotel worker from the major cargo port of Manzanillo.

State officials in Puerto Vallarta later allowed around 200 tourists to return to two hotels - albeit having recommended they stay at the shelter.

The US National Hurricane Center forecast Patricia would move deep inland and could dissipate on Saturday as its winds will be sapped by the mountains of western Mexico.

In Puerto Vallarta, the heart of a string of resorts that range from low-end mega hotels to exclusive villas attracting tech billionaires and pop stars, loudspeakers had blared orders to evacuate hotels ahead of Patricia's arrival.

The streets emptied as police sirens wailed in anticipation of Patricia, which gathered strength suddenly on Thursday night.

US weather experts said Patricia was the strongest storm yet registered in the Western Hemisphere, and said the unprecedented hurricane could have a catastrophic impact.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said it was hard to predict what damage would be done by the massive storm, which could be seen barreling into Mexico from outer space.

"But one thing we're certain of is that we're facing a hurricane of a scale we've never ever seen," he said in a radio interview.

Mexican and US officials said the unprecedented hurricane could wreak catastrophic damage.