Authorities rushed to evacuate low-lying areas and set up shelters as an "extremely dangerous" Hurricane Willa with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph headed toward a forecast Tuesday afternoon or evening landfall along a stretch of Mexico's Pacific coast dotted with high-rise resorts, surfing beaches and fishing villages. 

Newly formed Hurricane Willa rapidly intensified off Mexico's Pacific coast Sunday and early Monday and became a major Category 4 storm on the brink of turning into a Category 5, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.