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Hurricane Otis batters Mexico - 1st November 2023

Mexico’s Pacific coast was hit by a powerful category five hurricane. Hurricane Otis’s wind speeds reached 270 kilometres per hour. The popular tourist destination of Acapulco was destroyed, with 80 percent of the city’s hotels damaged.

Mudslides have severely damaged surrounding communities and houses and businesses have been ripped to pieces. The area has had no access to water supplies or electricity. Seventeen thousand soldiers were sent by the government to assist but they’ve been slowed down by blocked roads. However, residents are clearing any blockage to let the emergency services in.

Margarita Carmona’s encouraging neighbours to clear the roads.

Margarita Carmona: "We all agreed, we are going to unite as neighbours to pick up everything that is in the way, so that we can get through and wait for the help that may arrive."

Residents have lost their belongings in the storm. Fisherman Julian Matadama commented that all the broken glass on the ground posed a major threat.

Julian Matadama: "We are barefoot and we have nothing. We do not want to see the wounds we have on our feet because we don't want it to stop us going out to get food for our children."

Omar Flores feels hopeless about the future of the local tourist industry and how they’ll earn a living.

Omar Flores: "There won't be any tourists for a while. We don't know how we are going to get by. All we can think about is where we will get the money from to rebuild what we used to have."

Acapulco used to attract Hollywood stars. But after Hurricane Otis’s destruction, it’ll take a long time before tourists return.

However, for now, locals are focused on recovering from the damage, as Juana Flores expresses.

Juana Flores: "Right now we are seeing how we are going to be able to work. First and foremost, we need to fix the roof, and then with the little produce that survived, we will start working again. That's the only thing we can do."