Mexico throws troops, aid into Acapulco as hurricane death toll rises

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By Josue Decavele

ACAPULCO, Mexico (Reuters) -Mexico's government on Sunday intensified efforts to get the stricken coastal city of Acapulco back on its feet as the toll of dead and missing from a record-breaking hurricane that ravaged the iconic beach resort continued to rise.

Hurricane Otis ripped through Acapulco as a Category 5 storm on Wednesday, wrecking homes, hotels and businesses with 165 mph (266 kph) winds which downed power lines and communications, leaving the city of nearly 900,000 inhabitants incommunicado.

Looting broke out as food, water and gasoline become scarce after the destruction caused by Otis, which the government on Sunday said had killed 43 people, with another 36 unaccounted for. A day earlier, the toll stood at 39 dead and 10 missing.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said most of his cabinet was already in or headed for Acapulco, and that he would return there later on Sunday to lead recovery efforts as thousands of soldiers and police descended on the city.

«We're going to get Acapulco back on its feet, starting with its people,» he said in a video on social media.

The cost of damage could climb as high as $15 billion according to estimates, and Lopez Obrador said the ministers of finance and the economy would be in Acapulco on Monday. He also invited the Mexican central bank governor to travel there.

Residents in flooded areas have criticized the lack of government help. Many are struggling to find food and water.

«I was cleaned out, left with nothing,» said Blanca Estela Morales, a wheelchair-bound 52-year-old staying in a government-run shelter after her home was flooded. «This is really hard for me — we sleep on the floor, we don't have water to wash with.»

POLITICAL FALLOUT

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