Mexico Braces for Category 5 Hurricane, Risk of ‘Catastrophic’ Damage

The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said, Mexico’s southern coast braced for Hurricane Otis on Wednesday as the Category 5 storm barreled towards the beach resort of Acapulco, with the potential to cause “catastrophic damage.”
The storm was expected to come ashore between 4 a.m. (1000 GMT) and 6 a.m. (1200 GMT), bringing high winds and heavy rain. Mexico’s national water agency CONAGUA warned of six-to-eight meter surf off Guerrero state, home to Acapulco, and also off parts of Oaxaca state.
By 9 p.m. on Tuesday (0300 GMT), Otis was about 55 miles south-southeast of Acapulco and blowing maximum sustained winds of 160 mph (257 kph), the Miami-based NHC added.
In Guerrero, authorities were preparing storm shelters and the national guard said it was helping to prepare for rescues and evacuations.
The defense ministry enacted a disaster plan ahead of the storm’s arrival, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on social media late on Tuesday, as soldiers patrolled Acapulco’s emptying beaches.