ACAPULCO, Mexico >> Hurricane Adrian formed in the eastern Pacific on Wednesday, making it the first of the 2011 season.

As a precaution, the Mexican government issued a tropical storm watch for the Pacific coast from northwest to Punta San Telmo. But officials discontinued the watch a few hours later.

Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center said the storm’s center was expected to remain offshore, although a shift could bring tropical storm conditions to the coast.

The Guerrero state government said thunderstorms and hail might hit about 20 coastal towns, where about 2 million people live.

Late Wednesday, Adrian’s maximum sustained winds were about 80 mph and it was expected to get stronger.

The center of the storm was about 275 miles south of the beach resort of Zihuatenjo and moving northwest near 8 mph.