How mammoth Hurricane Patricia grew so powerful so fast

Soldiers help a woman out of her flooded house in Zoatlan, in Mexico’s Nayarit state.

Workers clean debris from a restaurant in Melaque, Mexico.

Men work to restore downed power lines in Melaque, Mexico.

A damaged gas station in Melaque, Mexico.

Residents walk through the debris of homes flattened by Hurricane Patricia, in Chamela, Mexico, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015. Record-breaking Patricia pushed rapidly inland over mountainous western Mexico early Saturday, weakening to a tropical storm while dumping torrential rains that authorities warned could cause deadly floods and mudslides.

A framed baby picture lies atop a collapsed wall as residents on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015, sort through the remains of homes destroyed by Hurricane Patricia in Chamela, Mexico.

Josefina Magana Ruiz, center, surveys her home in La Fortuna, Mexico, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015. Hurricane Patricia’s winds tore off much of the roof of the two-room home where seven people live, soaking mattresses and destroying belongings.

Maria del Refugio Ruiz Bravo, 86, sets out to dry personal belongings that were soaked by Hurricane Patricia in La Fortuna, Mexico.

The sign outside a restaurant in Barra de Navidad, Jalisco state, is flattened on Oct. 24, 2015, one day after Hurricane Patricia hit the shore of Mexico.

Rosalinda Mitsui Reina Magana holds a damaged Baby Jesus figurine, as she recovers objects from inside her uncle’s home,which was damaged by Hurricane Patricia, in La Fortuna, Mexico.

Firefighters set a line to pump water out of a flooded area in Cihuatlan, Jalisco state, after record-breaking Hurricane Patricia dumped heavy rain that triggered flooding.

A damaged restaurant sits vacant in Barra de Navidad, Jalisco state, after Hurricane Patricia hit the shore in Mexico.

Acres of plantain trees lie flattened on on Oct. 24, 2015, near Cihuatlan, Jalisco state, after Hurricane Patricia hit the shore of Mexico.

Residents stand outside their flooded house in Zoatlan in Mexico’s Nayarit state on Oct. 24, 2015, after Hurricane Patricia made landfall.

Soldiers evacuate residents to a shelter in Zoatlan in Nayarit state, about 90 miles northwest of Guadalajara, Mexico, on Oct. 24, 2015.

A dog sits outside a flooded house in Zoatlan in Nayarit state on Oct. 24, 2015.

A driver navigates a flooded road Oct. 24, 2015, at the entrance to the city of Tecoman in Colima state after heavy rains from Hurriane Patricia hit Mexico.

Residents walk along a flooded street in Zoatlan in Nayarit state on Oct. 24, 2015, after Hurricane Patricia made landfall in Mexico.

Men remove wooden beams erected to protect businesses in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, from the winds of Hurricane Patricia on Oct. 24, 2015.

Sand washed ashore by Hurricane Patricia is removed by Mexican soldiers from the streets of Manzanillo in Colima state on Oct. 24, 2015.

The seafront walkway in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, is calm and mostly deserted on Oct. 24, 2015, the morning after Hurricane Patricia passed to the south.

A man walks his dogs along the beachfront in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Oct. 24, 2015.

Mexican soldiers patrol streets during the arrival of Hurricane Patricia in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Oct. 23 ,2015.

A truck drives along a flooded street in Manzanillo, Mexico, amid rain from Hurricane Patricia.

Trees bend under Hurricane Patricia in Manzanillo, Mexico.

Evacuees at a shelter in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, as Hurricane Patricia approached.

People walk in the rain as Patricia arrives in Puerto Vallarta.

A guard stands in the rain as Patricia arrives in Puerto Vallarta.

Red Cross workers prepare a temporary shelter in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, as Hurricane Patricia approaches.

Municipal workers collect branches from a flooded street in Manzanillo, Mexico.

Storm clouds roll through Mexico’s western mountains, as Hurricane Patricia enters the state of Michoacan.

A couple looks out to sea as rainfall increases with the approach of Hurricane Patricia in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The storm barreled toward southwestern Mexico on Friday as a monster Category 5 storm, the strongest ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere.

Residents and tourists take refuge in a small shelter as they await the arrival of Hurricane Patricia in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

People make final preparations for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia in the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Mexican and international tourists board a bus to be transported to a shelter in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

As people begin to arrive, men try to secure the windows at a makeshift shelter from Hurricane Patricia, in the Pacific resort city Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Men fill sandbags from the beach in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, as they prepare for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia.

An employee of a beachfront hotel in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, rolls up mats as staff prepared for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia.

An airline employee walks through the empty airport in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, after all flights were canceled as Hurricane Patricia approached the Pacific resort city.

Waves break on the beach in Boca de Pascuales, Mexico, as fast-moving Patricia grew into an “extremely dangerous” major hurricane off the country’s Pacific coast.

Residents of Boca de Pascuales, Mexico, are evacuated before the arrival of Hurricane Patricia.

A worker carries a table at a seaside restaurant preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Patricia in the Pacific resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Satellite image shows Category 5 Hurricane Patricia swirling off the Pacific coast of Mexico.

Police patrol the beach in Boca de Pascuales, Mexico, in the path of Hurricane Patricia.

A man leaves his house in Boca de Pascuales, Mexico, before the arrival of Hurricane Patricia.

Residents of Boca de Pascuales, Mexico, prepare to be evacuated before the arrival of Hurricane Patricia.