Mexican authorities have issued a hurricane watch for the northeast coast from Tuxpan northward to La Cruz, as Tropical Storm Arlene, the season's first powerful Atlantic storm, gradually gathers strength.

Weather officials on Wednesday issued tropical storm warnings for the coastal area from Barra de Nautla northward to Bahia Algodones.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center says the storm is located about 255 kilometers east of Tampico, Mexico, and about 180 kilometers east of Tuxpan. Arlene was measured moving west at 13 kilometers per hour, with maximum sustained winds of 85 kilometers per hour.

Experts say Arlene is expected to reach the Mexican coast by Thursday.

Forecasters warn the storm could drench the Mexican states of Tamaulipas and Veracruz with up to 20 centimeters of rain, potentially causing “life-threatening flash floods and mudslides.”