“We are in ruins”: hit by Hurricane Otis in Acapulco they wait for help and the president of Mexico expects there will be no “bitter Christmas”

The state of Guerrero, Mexico, and its iconic beach resort of Acapulco are offering the world a side that no one could have imagined a week ago, when Otis was a tropical storm and the alarm had not yet gone off. Within hours, the meteorological phenomenon showed its teeth by becoming a hurricane and delivering a devastating blow.

On the morning of Tuesday, October 31, 2023, it was learned that the government of Guerrero had determined the number of deaths at 46 and the number of missing persons at 58 as a result of the passage of the Category 5 hurricane.

Among many needs, finding water is a priority. Since the weekend there have been long lines of people looking for the liquid.

The elderly, victims of Otis, show their vulnerability and express the wish in statements to the press that they will be helped quickly.

To understand the bleak reality, the government deployed 2,003 servers in Guerrero to conduct the counts, according to El Heraldo de México. On the night of Monday, October 30, 32,644 homes and small and medium-sized businesses were visited.

This is what Luis Miguel’s luxurious home in Acapulco looked like, which the singer left abandoned more than a decade ago.

In the same newspaper, an elderly woman, with serious mobility problems, talked about the great cooperation that her neighbor and friend Martha has given her:

Ana, who has kidney failure, lives in the Alianza Popular neighborhood. His house “was blown up by the cyclone.”

“The cyclone blew it up. Everything exploded. We are in a terrible ruin. I would like them to help us because I live alone. “My sister comes down to see me, my neighbor goes to wash me and that’s how I am, sir. I would like the authorities to hurry up because I have never experienced everything we are experiencing.”

Acapulco suffered a devastating blow: “All predictions failed,” says a scientist, explaining why Hurricane Otis unleashed so much fury on the state of Guerrero, Mexico

“I’m not crying because I’m holding it”

Another woman gave her painful testimony in a video spreading online. With the sea about to burst in his eyes, he said, “O Lord, I do not cry because I can bear it, but we have all lost everything.”

She stated that she was a single woman, that she had no one to help her earn a living and that at her age she had to start all over again.

Neighbors of the Alta Cuauhtémoc community stated, according to El Heraldo de México, that they have taken “extreme measures” due to the delicate situation. One of them eats only one meal a day.

Bringing Acapulco to its feet

Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a target of criticism for the handling of the situation, indicated on October 30 that they had helped those affected and promised: “We are going to mobilize Acapulco and its people as soon as possible.” possible, we are already working on it.”

He regretted that there is manipulation and misinformation; Even stronger was the expression about certain ‘conventional media’ that are ‘like vultures looking for the dead’ in Guerrero, after the devastation caused by the hurricane.

Otis evolved from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in less than 12 hours, becoming one of the most powerful cyclones in history in the Pacific Ocean, López Dóriga’s website reiterated.

More “optimistically,” López Obrador said on Tuesday, October 31, that there will be no “bitter Christmas” in Acapulco.

During the morning conference – called la mañanera – at the National Palace, López Obrador made it clear that “families will be very happy in Acapulco at Christmas.”

It will take time to give Acapulco its shine. Some say it will take a year and a half; Others respond that the full reactivation will take place in five years.

The head of the Ministry of Tourism, Miguel Torruco, said on Monday, October 30 that “within a week it will be possible to know how much the reconstruction of the tourist infrastructure on the coasts of Guerrero will cost.”

Hurricane Otis: the terrible images of how the famous Emporio Hotel was left where El Chavo del 8 was shot in Acapulco

Mental health care and humanitarian aid

The people of Guerrero will also need psychological support. That frustration and despair do not overcome them, as EFE has noted, is also crucial.

It is not easy to see how Acapulcan’s paradise fell apart. The press has highlighted how neighbors are organizing to care for what is left of their belongings, collecting rubble and supporting each other in the search for water. The gesture of a policewoman who heard a baby’s “desperate cry” and offered to breastfeed him went viral.

The solidarity of other Mexican states for Guerrero was activated through networks. Several countries began sending humanitarian aid. That’s what it’s all about: unity in times of adversity. Not to leave grandparents or lonely people behind. The task is not easy, but the sum of the wills will certainly make a difference. (JO)