John weakens into a tropical storm after making landfall in Mexico

(Reuters) -Hurricane John has been downgraded to a tropical storm and is moving northwestward after it made landfall on Mexico's southern Pacific coast late on Monday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory.

The storm was about 115 miles (185km) north west of Punta Maldonado, Mexico, packing maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110kph), the Miami-based forecaster said on Tuesday.

John, which made landfall as a powerful Category 3 storm, is bringing life-threatening winds, storm surges, and heavy rain to the area. It hit near Marquelia, Guerrero, with sustained winds of 120 mph (193 kph).

"Life-threatening flash flooding to continue along Southern Mexican coast for the next few days," the NHC said, despite the downgrade to tropical storm.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Monday urged residents to seek higher ground, emphasizing that the priority was to save lives.

Authorities declared a red alert for parts of Guerrero and Oaxaca, where rainfall could exceed 250 mm (10 inches), leading to severe flooding and mudslides.

The Mexican port town of Puerto Escondido, in Oaxaca, saw residents rushing to secure boats and beach gear, while schools in affected areas were closed.

(Reporting by Natalia Siniawski in Madrid, Anushree Mukherjee in BengaluruEditing by Peter Graff and Christina Fincher)