The origins of Hurricane Tico were a weak tropical disturbance that crossed Costa Rica into the Pacific Ocean on October 7, 1983.

Over warm waters, the system was sufficiently organized to be declared Tropical Depression Twenty-One on October 11, about 575 mi (925 km) south of Acapulco.

It weakened slightly as it approached the coast, and at about 1500 UTC that day Tico made landfall near Mazatlán with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h).

Although most of its impact occurred in Mexico, Tico's remnants moved into the United States, where they caused heavy rains and flooding.

The origins of Hurricane Tico were from a weak tropical disturbance that crossed Costa Rica into the Pacific Ocean on October 7.

It tracked westward through an area of progressively warmer water temperatures, and by October 11 the system was sufficiently organized to be declared Tropical Depression Twenty-One, about 575 mi (930 km) south of the Mexican port of Acapulco.

The depression initially maintained a west-northwest motion, although on October 12 it turned sharply northward, due to the influence of a strong trough moving eastward through Mexico.

Gradually organizing, the depression was upgraded to Tropical Storm Tico on October 13 by the Eastern Pacific Hurricane Center (EPHC).

A Hurricane Hunters flight late on October 13 indicated the beginnings of an eyewall, 14 miles (22 km) in diameter, although the eye was open and incomplete.

Meanwhile, another trough moved eastward across northwestern Mexico; as a result, the hurricane turned northwestward and began accelerating while maintaining a well-defined eye.

It weakened slightly as it approached the coast, and at about 1500 UTC that day Tico made landfall very near Mazatlán with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h).

[1] It rapidly weakened over land and merged with a cold front, although significant moisture from the hurricane persisted into the South Central United States.

[3] As the tropical cyclone passed south of the Baja California Peninsula, it dropped light rainfall of around 1 inch (25 mm) in the area.

Precipitation from Tico continued northeastward and eastward, with rainfall totals of 3–7 inches (75–175 mm) extending across the Ohio Valley and into the Mid-Atlantic.

The patrol also asked the Oklahoma City police to help find victims in the floodwaters, but plans for this were held off late on October 20 due to poor weather conditions.