MIAMI (AP) — Genevieve strengthened into a major hurricane in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday and is expected to intensify well southwest of Mexico but stay far out to sea on a course roughly parallel to the coast.
Genevieve had maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (220 kph), making it a Category 4 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. A major hurricane is Category 3, with winds of at least 111 mph (179 kph), or higher.
Genevieve’s center was located about 530 miles (855 kilometers) southwest of Manzanillo, and it was headed west-northwest at 14 mph (22 kph).
No coastal watches or warnings were in effect, but the hurricane center said that swells from the storm — likely causing “life-threatening surf and rip current conditions” — were affecting parts of Mexico’s southwestern coast and would likely reach southern parts of the Baja California Peninsula on Sunday night or Monday.
The storm was expected to strengthen further before weakening by midweek.
Farther northwest in the Pacific, Hurricane Fausto weakened to a Category 1 storm as it continued on a path in the general direction of the Hawaiian Islands.
Forecasters said Fausto was expected to be downgraded to a tropical storm in the coming days but warned that it could still generate significant surf for parts of Hawaii.
Fausto had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kph). It was located about 825 miles (1,330 kilometers) east of Hilo and was moving west at 14 mph (22 kph).
This satellite image released by NOAA shows Hurricane Fausto, center, and Hurricane Genevieve off the southwest coast of Mexico, right, over the Pacific Ocean, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (NOAA via AP)
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to keep one of its largest and most expensive detention facilities open for at least another year despite calls to close it over reported human rights abuses, according to a notice published last week.
ICE plans to extend the no-bid contract of the firm that runs Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, through Sept. 30, 2027, at a potential additional cost to taxpayers of $776 million, the notice says. This is on top of a $452 million initial contract that the firm, Amentum Services Inc., was awarded in March when it was hastily installed to take over the camp’s operation from a contractor removed for poor performance.
For months, Democratic members of Congress and several advocacy organizations have called for Camp East Montana to be closed, citing reports that detainees have been routinely mistreated since its opening in August 2025.
A report released earlier this month by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union alleged that staff routinely beat detainees, denied them medical care, made them live in filthy conditions and fed them inedible meals. Reports by federal agencies have also found unsafe detention conditions and that the Army and ICE have wasted millions of dollars paying for unnecessary services. At least three Camp East Montana detainees have died.
The facility at Fort Bliss, an Army base near the U.S.-Mexico border, has housed an average of more than 2,000 male and female detainees a day since Oct. 1, though its population has declined significantly in recent months, according to ICE data.
“Extending Amentum’s contract while ignoring well-documented abuses is reckless and demonstrates the Trump administration’s full-scale assault on human rights,” said Angélica César, a fellow at Human Rights Watch and the ACLU who was a lead researcher for the report. “Instead of holding private contractors accountable, DHS is choosing to perpetuate a system of harm and abuse.”
Chanel Mann, a spokesperson for Amentum, referred questions to ICE and its parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, which didn’t immediately return messages seeking comment.
ICE's notice was a justification for extending Amentum Services’ contract for a year without a competitive bidding process.
The agency argued that relocating detainees to other facilities would be “impracticable” due to a lack of available bed space elsewhere. Transitioning to a different contractor would require replacing Amentum’s “proprietary infrastructure” and finding new workers, which would lead to duplicative costs, it said.
“Any lapse in contract coverage would directly threaten the life, safety, and well-being of detainees, severely disrupt law enforcement operations, and expose the government to substantial operational, legal, and humanitarian risks,” the notice says.
ICE's notice said the Army's initial contract, awarded to Acquisition Logistics LLC, “did not accurately reflect ICE's operational needs or the actual usage of the facility.” Acquisition Logistics had no prior experience operating detention facilities.
In all, Virginia-based Amentum stands to be paid more than $1.2 billion if it operates the camp from March 2026 through September 2027, the notice says.
FILE - A sign marks the entrance to a series of hardened tents at the Camp East Montana immigrant detention center in the desert at a U.S. Army base on the outskirts of El Paso, Texas, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee, File)
