Acapulco, devastated and isolated

ACAPULCO.– Otis It took everyone by surprise and the dawn of Wednesday revealed the chaos it left in this port.

The rains and winds of the category 5 hurricane damaged buildings, hotels, homes and businesses; Antennas, poles, trees collapsed and caused landslides on federal highways and the Autopista del Sol, which partially reopened.

At the time of going to press, telephone and internet service had not been restored, leaving thousands of people incommunicado. The first calls and messages took place in the afternoon, intermittently.

The CFE reported that more than 504 thousand users were left without electricity, the majority in Acapulco; Last night it had restored service to 40% of those affected.

After traveling ten hours by road and walking a stretch because the vehicle transporting him was stranded, President López Obrador arrived in Acapulco, where he will lead the evaluation of the effects, still uncertain due to the collapse of communication services.

Given the impact of Otis, airlines canceled flights to and from this port. Trucking companies also suspended bullfights.

In some areas there were acts of looting in stores, supermarkets and pharmacies.

Fernanda Familiar, collaborator of Image Group, said that he spent one of the most difficult nights of his life in a hotel. The floor she was on was the ninth, which collapsed when she was already safe.

With information from Isabel González

ACAPULCO, DESOLATE

TOCAPULCO.— Destroyed buildings, fallen trees, light poles and billboards, electrical interruptions and floods are the preliminary results of the hurricane's passage Otis in Acapulco, after its impact as category 5 early yesterday morning.

In the afternoon, the phenomenon weakened to low pressure, already over Michoacan territory.

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According to the Secretariat of National Defense, the passage of the meteor through Guerrero also left vehicles stranded, telephone and internet services interrupted, fences falling, and homes and facilities affected.

Yesterday morning, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador reported that, although the authorities had no reports of loss of human life, “there is no communication” with the most affected areas.

The hurricane hit very hard in Guerrero, on the Costa Grande, in Acapulco... and other municipalities. The hurricane is still affecting,” he said in his morning press conference.

As of press time, there was no official report on the effects of the hurricane.

Incommunicado

In Acapulco, the telephone and internet networks collapsed and it was not until after 2:00 p.m. that the internet service began to work intermittently.

The Federal Electricity Commission reported that more than 504 thousand users were left without electricity supply in Guerrero, the majority in Acapulco, but by midday it had restored service to 40% of those affected.

Social media users shared the damage that the strong winds and rains of Otis They left the famous Princess Hotel and the traditional Plaza Diana in the Diamante area, as well as in colonies such as Morelos.

Mobility, paralyzed

The impact of Otis In Guerrero it affected passenger transportation by air and land.

The federal highways that connect Mexico City with Acapulco suffered landslides, while the one that connects with Tierra Colorada and Cruz Grande were flooded at various points by the region's rivers.

Through social networks, various companies asked users to be attentive to know the status of their flights and land trips. Some of them, like Volaris, even canceled operations.

The Acapulco International Airport is disabled after the hurricane Otiswith the facilities flooded and part of the roof covering, soffits and walls blown down by the wind.

The Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT) reported damage to the air terminal, with flooding in the counter area, the control tower out of service, with broken glass and the headquarters destroyed.

With information from Raúl Flores

Seismic alert sensors, without communication

The Seismic Instrumentation and Registration Center, AC (Cires) reported that at least 27 sensors of the Mexican Seismic Alert System (Sasmex) were left without communication due to the impact of the Otis to the state of Guerrero, which made landfall near the port of Acapulco, as a category 5 hurricane, to gradually degrade to a tropical storm.

Given the lack of communication with these sensors, in the event of a strong earthquake, mainly in the Pacific Ocean region of Guerrero, Michoacán and Oaxaca, seismic alerts would not sound, Cires indicated.

He warned that, although the brigades are ready to begin repair work, due to the damage to land communication routes, it will take time to rehabilitate communication with said sensors.

However, it was not ruled out to request federal and local Civil Protection authorities to restore the system, as soon as weather conditions allow.

Given this situation, the coordinator of the C-5 of Mexico City, Juan Manuel García Ortegón, called to wait for a "joint statement, between the Cires and the C-5", which will be issued in the next few hours - to know the situation that affects the seismic warning systems, and how they will be operating in the country's capital.

Other seismic warning systems were also damaged after the impact of Otis. SkyAkert, the company that through an application notifies its users about tremors registered in the country, lost connection in “a large part of the sensor network” in the region, so in the event that an earthquake is recorded in any of these areas, the platform would not be able to alert the population either.

The towns most affected by the disconnection of some SkyAlert sensors are San Marcos, Ayutla, Cuajinicuilapa, Acapulco, Coyuca de Benítez, Atoyac de Álvarez, San Jerónimo, Técpan, Petatlán and Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo.

Hilda Castellanos-Lanzarin

More than 300 thousand people are still without electricity

Given the impact of Hurricane Otis, the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) took immediate actions to restore electrical service as soon as possible, thereby managing to restore supply to 40% of the 504,4340 users affected so far in the year. state of Guerrero due to the impact of the hurricane Otis.

The CFE has deployed 1,320 workers, 159 cranes, 511 vehicles, 37 emergency plants, 21 lighting towers and three helicopters at strategic points in the affected areas.

In a statement, it detailed that 504,450 users were affected and that as of last night, service had been restored to 202,932, that is, 40 percent.

The personnel of the Federal Electricity Commission, taking into account all security measures, maintain the restoration work in the affected area. It will not rest until the service of users affected by the phenomenon is fully normalized,” he assured.

The CFE identified 58 collapsed structures of high voltage lines, the main source of electrical energy in the affected region, so their repair is a priority.

In the affected areas, progress is being made in parallel with the repair of damage and rehabilitation of the medium and low voltage network. Once the high-voltage lines are recovered, the restoration of power supply can be expedited,” he explained.

He indicated that he maintains close coordination with the National Civil Protection System, the Secretariats of National Defense, the Navy, Health, the National Water Commission and the state and municipal governments.

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