 A tropical wave moved off the western coast of Africa on September 11 , traversed the Caribbean and crossed the Yucatán on September 21 . The disturbance developed a small surface low on September 24 while moving erratically over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico . Strong upper @-@ level winds initially prevented the system from developing convection ; however , the shear relaxed on the following day and convection increased . On the evening of September 25 , a Hurricane Hunter aircraft found evidence that the low qualified as a tropical depression . Under weak steering currents , the depression drifted south and southwest , executing a small cyclonic loop into the Bay of Campeche . Upper @-@ level winds gave way to an anticyclone above the depression , and the system became Tropical Storm Lorenzo on September 27 about 130 nautical miles ( 240 km ) east of Tuxpan . Rapid intensification brought Lorenzo to hurricane status early that evening , less than twelve hours after becoming a tropical storm . Lorenzo reached its peak intensity on September 28 , then weakened slightly before making landfall near Tecolutla , Mexico as a minimal hurricane . The small circulation weakened rapidly after landfall , and the system dissipated the next day . 
