Mexico City, Oct 31 (EFE), – Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador vowed on Tuesday to “put Acapulco back on its feet” by Christmas, after its historic devastation by Hurricane Otis, which left 46 dead and unquantified damages after hitting southern Guerrero state last week.
“Now comes all the support in resources for the families, and all the measures to begin the reconstruction to put Acapulco back on its feet. We are going to get there soon, very soon, because a lot of progress is being made,” the president said Monday in his morning press conference.
“It won’t take long, I have this dream and the ideal is to achieve it together, as is happening. So that by Christmas the families of Acapulco will be very happy, as they deserve. This is the commitment, it will not be a bitter Christmas,” he added.
The search for people and damage assessment continues after nearly a week of devastation from Otis, which made landfall in Guerrero on Wednesday as a Category 5 hurricane, breaking Mexico’s record, especially in Acapulco, the hardest hit city.
The governor of Guerrero, Evelyn Salgado, said that 58 people are still missing.
Meanwhile, the Secretary of Social Welfare of the Federal Government, Ariadna Montiel, assured that they have recorded damages in 32,644 homes and small and medium businesses.
The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) said that 25% of the more than half a million users who were left without electricity remain without service.
López Obrador promised that on Wednesday his entire cabinet would present a report quantifying the damage and an initial recovery plan.
The president explained that on Monday, the heads of the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) and the Tax Administration Service (SAT), as well as officials from the Nacional Financiera (Nafin), the National Bank of Works (Banobras) and the Bank of Mexico will be in the area.
“Tomorrow, as I explained, the measures that will be applied in a first phase will be announced, which is to restore basic services, guarantee security, support with food, with water,” he said.
The Secretary of the Navy, José Rafael Ojeda, said that 700 more sailors have arrived, bringing the total to 5,700 deployed in southern Guerrero, while the Secretary of National Defense, Luis Cresencio Sandoval, said that there are 6,500 elements in the area. from the Mexican Army and Air Force, and 5,000 from the National Guard. EFE
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