“Otis”
At least 27 dead in Mexico due to hurricane in the seaside resort of Acapulco
A Category 5 hurricane hit Mexico’s southern Pacific coast
© Marco Ugarte / AP / DPA
A violent hurricane has caused enormous damage in the well-known holiday resort of Acapulco in Mexico. The extent is slowly becoming clear.
Hurricane Otis killed at least 27 people on the west coast of Mexico. Another four people are still missing, as Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez announced on Thursday. The storm hit the famous seaside resort Acapulco caused devastating damage.
“Otis” hit the coast on Wednesday night as an extremely dangerous hurricane of the highest level 5 with sustained wind speeds of almost 270 kilometers per hour and gusts of up to 330 kilometers per hour. It then lost strength over land and finally dissipated.
Half a million households in Mexico without electricity
Initially there was little information about the extent of the damage because the internet and telephone networks had collapsed. According to the state provider CFE, 500,000 households were temporarily without power. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador traveled to Acapulco with several ministers to assess the situation.
Acapulco is known for its cliff divers and luxury hotels. The international jet set once stayed there. However, due to the high level of violent crime, fewer and fewer tourists have recently come from abroad. Today, residents of Mexico City in particular spend their long weekends in the seaside resort.
Photos in the media showed, among other things, devastated stretches of coastline in the city. The lobby of a hotel was littered with debris, and even a small car was washed inside the hotel. The facade of the Galerías Diana shopping center was completely demolished on one side.
Landslides and uprooted trees blocked roads and highways. In the village of Sabanillas, according to a report by “Milenio”, the houses and fields of dozens of families were destroyed. The local government set up emergency shelters, Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado Pineda announced. According to the Ministry of Defense, around 8,400 soldiers were deployed to the region to help with recovery and clean-up work.
“Otis” also damaged the earthquake early warning system on Mexico’s Pacific coast. The operator announced on Wednesday that communication with at least 27 of the approximately 100 sensors in the seismic observation network was interrupted. If a strong earthquake occurs near the damaged sensors, the population cannot be warned in time.