Annual hurricane plays

[Track]

VERACRUZ, Mexico - Lorenzo strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane as it bore down on Mexico's Gulf Coast with powerful winds and rain, forcing authorities to evacuate low-lying coastal communities before its projected Friday landfall.

Officials canceled classes and set up temporary shelters on the coastline of Veracruz state Thursday, as the Mexican government issued a hurricane warning from Palma Sola to Cabo Rojo.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Florida said late Thursday that Lorenzo was forecast to strengthen further before hitting land in six to 12 hours near the small port of Tuxpan, and warned that "preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion."