By Cesar Reyes
26 Oct 2023, 10:31 AM EDT
The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, mourned the death of 27 people and 4 more missing after the passage of Hurricane Otis that hit the coasts of the state of Guerrero as a category 5.
“We are very sorry for the loss as reported here of 27 human beings27 people died, last night we had the report of 18 and 4 missing, now they inform us that there are 27 people, that is what hurts the most because the material things can be taken care of and we are going to do it with great responsibility,” he said. .
López Obrador sent his condolences to the relatives of the deceased and specified that those missing are members of the Mexican army.
“Condolences to all the family members and those who lost their lives due to the effect of the hurricane. Yesterday the commander of the military zone in Acapulco told us that an element of the army, while being free in his house, a wall collapsed on him because many trees, many cars were affected throughout Acapulco, Of the missing people we have three who are members of the Secretary of the Navy”, accurate.
From his morning conference, the Mexican president assured that the impact of the hurricane was very strong, where the greatest damage was recorded in Acapulco and Coyuca de Benítez.
“We are going to deal with everything related to the damage left by Hurricane Otis in Acapulco, also in Coyuca de Benítez and in other municipalities, however, The greatest damage is in Acapulco”, he pointed.
For her part, the Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection, Rosa Icela Rodríguez, reported that Hurricane Otis left 6 road closures in Guerreroincluding the road that connects Acapulco with the capital, Chilpancingo, and the highway from Mexico City to Acapulco.
Rosa Icela Rodríguez said that the Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT) deployed 900 workers, 60 vehicles and more than 200 pieces of heavy machinery, in addition to damage to the Regional General Hospital 1 of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS). ) in Acapulco, where 200 patients were transferred to other clinics.
In a telephone call that was transmitted in the morning conference from the National Palace, the governor of Guerrero, Evelyn Salgado said that 80% of the hotel infrastructure was damaged in the tourist port of Acapulco and that the Federal Electricity Commission, CFE, is working at full speed to restore electrical service.
“It has been totally devastating for our port, but work is already underway with all the support that you (López Obrador), the federal cabinet, CFE, have given us. Inform you, president, that they are indeed already working at full speed to restore all electricity and Internet services,” he commented.
Keep reading:
- Mexico expects Otis to make landfall early Wednesday morning as a category 4 hurricane
- Southern Mexico on alert in the face of the advance of Category 2 Hurricane Otis
- Hurricane Otis leaves destruction and the population incommunicado in Guerrero, Mexico, after impacting as a category 5