Mexico reports damage to main roads in Guerrero after Hurricane Otis

Mexico City, Oct 25 (EFE).- The Mexican government reported Wednesday damage to the main roads in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero, following the passage of Hurricane Otis, which made landfall early in the morning as a category 5 hurricane, one of the strongest in the country’s history.

The damage caused by the storm has led to the closure of roads due to overflowing rivers and falling rocks, leaving much of the southern coast of the state cut off.

The SICT (Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation) warned of a total closure of the Mexico-Acapulco highway in the Chilpancingo-Acapulco section.

Faced with this situation, the SICT deployed more than 900 workers, 60 vehicles and more than 200 pieces of heavy machinery in the hope of “restoring traffic as soon as possible and providing safety to users.”

Hurricane Otis, which made landfall Wednesday as a Category 5 hurricane on Mexico’s Pacific coast in the state of Guerrero, weakened to a tropical storm by midday, but left the area cut off and raining throughout the day.

According to the Federal Electricity Commission, Otis has left more than half a million people without power, and mobile communications have also been affected.

Presidential visit

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador traveled to Acapulco in southern Mexico on Wednesday to assess the damage caused by the hurricane.

The president told a group of reporters that he personally traveled by road from Mexico City to Acapulco, one of Mexico’s top tourist destinations, which has been cut off after the hurricane.

López Obrador acknowledged that there was no possibility of flying due to weather conditions.

The Mexican president also told the press that there were still no official reports of casualties or damage from the area due to the lack of communication.

During the trip, López Obrador confirmed the closure of some roads, but stressed that the Mexican Army, along with the Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation, had brought machinery “and we will try to reopen the highway as soon as possible.

The president also reported that he sent the heads of the Secretariat of National Defense, the Navy, Security and Citizen Protection, Communications and Transportation and the National Coordination of Civil Protection to the area. EFE

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