Mexico Government Starts Analyzing Hurricane Patricia's Damage

The remnants of Hurricane Patricia dropped heavy rain over central Mexico on Saturday morning, a day after pounding coastal luxury resorts and impoverished villages alike as a Category 5 storm -- uprooting trees, toppling utility poles and unleashing mudslides.

Patricia, the strongest hurricane ever recorded at sea, weakened slightly before striking southwestern Mexico's coast Friday evening with crushing 165-mph sustained winds.

By late Saturday morning, Patricia had been downgraded to a tropical depression, sapped by mountainous terrain, with 35-mph sustained winds. It's expected to dissipate Saturday night.

In a tweet, emergency response officials in Mexico said airports in Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta have resumed operations.

Mexican officials had expressed cautious optimism overnight, with President Enrique Peña Nieto saying "damages have been minor to those corresponding to a hurricane of this magnitude."

But officials expected to know more about the full scale of the destruction after touring the coast Saturday, and serious flooding and mudslide threats remain.