But the US National Hurricane Center warned that “heavy rainfall is likely to fall over parts of Central America, regardless of how close the predicted tropical storm winds reach the coast.”

Authorities in El Salvador said half a dozen people had died during a week of rain impacted by Blas and other weather systems.

The Hurricane Center said Celia had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and was about 145 miles (235 km) south of San Salvador. It was moving north-northeast at 3 mph (6 kph).

On Friday, Blas was about 320 miles (515 km) west-southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph) and moving west-northwest at 14 mph (22 kph).

The hurricane brought dangerous surf to the coast. The region was ravaged when Hurricane Agatha made landfall near Puerto Angel on May 30.

Forecasters expected Blas to begin to weaken on Saturday as it stayed above open water and moved further into the Pacific.