Hurricane Erick slammed into Mexico’s Oaxaca state as a dangerous Category 3 storm Thursday morning, unleashing powerful winds at the coast and heavy rains that have caused deadly flooding in the region.

Erick made landfall in extreme western Oaxaca, just east of Punta Maldonado, with estimated maximum sustained winds near 125 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

Hurricane Erick had strengthened to a Category 4 storm as it approached the coast but weakened to a Category 3 storm before making landfall on Thursday.