Strong Hurricane Otis, classified as “potentially catastrophic,” made landfall on Wednesday near Acapulco, a famous seaside resort on the Pacific coast of western Mexico, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Wednesday still hopes that it will weaken in the coming years even more hours.
“Satellite images indicate that Otis made landfall near Acapulco at approximately 06:25 GMT,” the NHC said, citing winds of up to 270 km/h.
The cyclone, with maximum strength 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, is “potentially catastrophic” if it makes landfall but could weaken “rapidly” as it moves inland into a mountainous region, the NHC forecast.
“Take shelter, stay in safe places: away from rivers, streams, ravines and be vigilant,” warned Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on X (ex-Twitter).
In Acapulco, power was shut off as a precaution and the port was plunged into darkness as strong winds and heavy rains began to devastate the city of 780,000.
Hotels are 50% full and local authorities have prepared places in hostels. Acapulco is preparing for an influx of tourists on All Saints Day, a major holiday in Mexico.
Schools were closed by order of the government of the state of Guerrero, where Acapulco is located.
Twelve hours ago, the cyclone off the Pacific was still a tropical storm
“There are no visits today, the port is closed to tourists,” said Carolina Torres, local tour boat operator, in an AFPTV video.
“It’s very strange. It (Hurricane Otis) is supposed to be right in front of us and it looks very calm. So we’re hoping it will ease up a bit. Let’s hope so because if it affects us it will be very serious for us.” , added her.
Paulina, Norma, Patricia, Ingrid…
Governor Evelyn Salgado emphasized the importance of coordination between authorities and the armed forces for “the well-being of residents and the prevention of risks.”
The seaside resort of Acapulco was hit by Hurricane Paulina on October 9, 1997, making landfall as a Category 4 hurricane. Paulina killed more than 200 people, one of the worst natural disasters for Mexico outside of the earthquake.
Last week, Hurricane Norma killed three people a little further north in Sinaloa state. Norma made landfall twice, first on the Baja California peninsula, then in the state of Sinaloa.
Located between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, Mexico is subject to hurricanes during the May-October-November season. A dozen depressions per year can become more or less devastating hurricanes, depending on the point of entry.
However, the strongest wind ever recorded, Patricia, in October 2015 with wind speeds of 325 km/h, only caused material damage as it entered the area through an uninhabited mountainous area.
In September 2013, Hurricane Ingrid in the Gulf and Tropical Storm Manuel in the Pacific hit Mexico at the same time.
“Their interaction represented a historic phenomenon not seen since 1958,” said authorities, who recorded 157 deaths, including victims of landslides.
As the sea surface warms, the frequency of the most violent cyclones (or hurricanes or typhoons, depending on the region) increases, but not their total number.
According to the International Group of Climate Experts (IPCC), the proportion of particularly intense cyclones (category 4 and 5) is expected to increase by 10% compared to pre-industrial times at +1.5°C warming, from 13% at +2° C and 30% at +4°C.
In particular, they pose an increasing risk to coastal communities suffering from wave inundation phenomena (also called marine flooding), which are exacerbated by sea level rise and lead to flooding and salt pollution of land and water. pure water.
Due to rising sea levels and ocean flooding, more than a billion people will live in vulnerable coastal cities by 2050, according to the IPCC.