PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico — Hurricane Simon was just offshore early Sunday, Oct. 11, and was forecast to move inland later in the day with sustained winds of up to 155 mph, just short of Category 5 strength. The storm was moving north-northwest at 6 mph and was about 60 miles west-southwest of Manzanillo, according to the National Hurricane Center. Forecasters warned that parts of southwestern Mexico could receive 10 to 20 inches of rain, with isolated totals as high as 30 inches in Michoacán, Colima and Jalisco. The hurricane center cautioned that the rainfall could cause life-threatening flooding and mudslides, particularly in steep terrain. It also forecast a dangerous storm surge near and east of the storm’s expected landfall, accompanied by large, destructive waves along the coast. Jalisco suspended classes Friday and Monday in 22 coastal municipalities and began evacuating dozens of people from areas considered at risk. State officials also urged Puerto Vallarta’s tourism businesses to ensure workers and visitors had shelter or another safe place to stay. In Puerto Vallarta, hotels, convenience stores and other businesses boarded up windows Saturday as overcast skies settled over mostly quiet streets. Jesús Gómez, who was handing out samples of candied peanuts outside a shop, said he planned to keep working until civil protection officials ordered businesses to close, then seek shelter. Canadian visitor Ed Currie said he and his wife still had five days planned in the resort city and expected to stay inside their hotel. “I just don’t know what to expect,” he said. The storm’s forecast rainfall and coastal surge posed the greatest immediate risks for residents and visitors in the affected areas, particularly people in flood-prone communities and those living on steep slopes.