"It was really strong," said Cecilia Crespo, a police spokeswoman in Escuinapa, a seaside town near to where the storm plowed inland. "It knocked down trees, lamps, poles, walls," she added by telephone. "There's no electricity."
The storm drove into Mexico about 50 miles (80 km) south of Mazatlan, a major city and tourist resort in Sinaloa. Willa had reached rare Category 5 status on Monday with winds near 160 mph (260 kph) before it began to lose power.
Willa weakened as it moved inland but was still blowing winds of 115 mph (185 kph) more than an hour after it struck the coast.
Speaking by telephone, Jose Garcia, another resident of the hardest-hit area, said he had hunkered down with others in an Escuinapa hotel waiting for the storm to pass, listening to it rattle buildings as it drove onwards.
"People were very alarmed," the 60-year-old said.
The storm did not strike hard in Mazatlan's historic city center, which was nearly deserted ahead of its arrival.
"My house is made of sheet metal, wood and cardboard, and I'm scared it will fall on top of me," said Rosa Maria Carrillo, 36, at a city shelter with her five children.